Caleb5thyr

This Page Last Updated January 1, 2009

December 26th 2008...

Well...where do I start??

The last entry I did Caleb was on term 3 school holidays and now he is on end of year holidays!!! Yes...my big boy is all finished his first year of school (prep). He is now 2 weeks into his 6 weeks end of year holiday. He had a absolute BLAST in prep so I know he is very much looking forward to starting year 1 next year.

He had a lovely prep teacher and yesterday we were thrilled to open the Xmas gift he'd wrapped for us in school to find a display folder with samples of his years work, how much he'd grown in height and weight over the year, photo's etc and just a lovely keepsake of his year at prep.

After the Xmas season is fully passed we'll begin to work on his booklist for next year, new shoes etc and also new uniform tops (the prep's had a different colour to the rest of the school). He's very excited about the little changes that next years 'big school' will bring...like an actual desk of his own, pencils of his own rather then class sets, a drink bottle of water on his desk and swimming lessons etc. Not to mention a new teacher, new classroom and new friends. All signs my little boy is growing up :)

Already these holidays have been action packed. We've had cinema trips, beach trips, aquatic centre trips, play dates with friends, park visits, lot's of shopping and even a Wiggles concert. The Wiggles did a live concert in Sydney on Dec 21st and it was then streamed live to several cinemas around the country. We went mainly for Talyn but Caleb really enjoyed it too.

Then of course he's had all the Christmas fun. Carols by candlelight in the park, Santa photo's, Xmas break up parties, driving around to look at Xmas lights several nights a week in the lead up to Xmas and we hosted a pre-christmas get together here for 12 of our friends last week which he had an absolute blast at!

Being so hot we've spent A LOT of time in the pool these past few weeks too. Caleb absolutely loves his pool. He's quite the little water creature. He practices his strokes and is really quite good at freestyle now. He's forever jumping in and out or saying 'watch me, watch me' as he dives down to the bottom of the pool and back. He loves to wear his goggles and flippers and play around under the surface and despite my militant use of sunscreen he's working up quite the summer tan :)

We did some lovely little rituals for Xmas Eve this year. Caleb made a 'magic Santa key' at school this year since we don't have a chimney. We hung it on the back door for Santa to use to get into the house to leave his presents. We also had magic reindeer sprinkle dust to lay out in the back yard to guide Santa and his crew where to go. As is our usual tradition we also left out carrots and milk for the reindeer :)

The TAJ MAHAL of cubby houses was completed in time for Christmas so we set out the reindeer snacks on it's stairs then sprinkled the reindeer dust all the way to the back door where the magic key was waiting. Then when he was all tucked up in bed fast asleep we set about making up the boys new trampoline in the back yard. It didn't take too long and boy was it worth it. After all the gifts had been unwrapped we said..."wait... there's one more present out the back". Boy how they loved it!!!!! It's fully padded with the nets all round though so no broken arms for Caleb on this one I hope :)

Caleb was thrilled with all his many gifts this year. They included a water/sand play table, the trampoline, cubby house (see below), transformers, TMNT toys, dinosaur magnetix, paint a plates, tools, heaps of books, coloring in pads and pens, stickers, hotwheels motor bikes, new swimmers and PJ"s, water guns and missiles, pool toys, snorkel set, insect creating kits, etcha-sketcha type sets and so so much more.

The cubby house turned out fantastic!!! It has a verandah with a wooden deck. Fully railed stairs up the verandah and a slide access back down also. The floor is tiled, the outside is rendered and the back wall inside has a built in chalk board Caleb chose the colour's for inside and we painted the outside a subtle cream/brown type scheme to suit the gardens. So now the back corner has a cubby house with slide, sandpit, trampoline, swing set and sea-saw...all beside a big garden and under a shady tree. Talk about kiddies corner!!! *wink*

On Christmas day after opening all the gifts and having a play on the trampoline we all enjoyed a yummy cooked breakfast on the BBQ. Then we all spent the morning in the pool before getting ready for lunch. As it was only the four of us lunch consisted of ham, cold roast beef and chicken, prawns and salad. Then we all settled down for a nice air-con nap before heading out to our friends place for dinner. We got there in the afternoon and swam and played before enjoying another lovely cool dinner of salad, ham and chicken. Then we watched the kids all play while the adults drank before calling our dial-a-driver to head home about 8.30pm. Then our tired little boys were tucked into bed while mommy and daddy enjoyed a late night swim before bed.

That's Christmas over. Next is New Years!!! At this stage we are either hosting a pool party here or having one at the house of the same friends we spent Xmas evening with. Either way the kids will have a blast swimming and playing with their friends while the adults sink a drink or two (ok...or a few more *wink*).

We just bought a new computer this afternoon and once we get it all set up and everything moved over I'll come back and post some photo's of our Xmas period for you all. I'll let you know here when that's done :)

Ooh one more exciting thing...I think Caleb's dairy allergy is finally going!!!! We have started to mix in more and more dairy milk with his soy milk and cereal each morning and so far - Not a single sign of any reaction!!!!! VERY VERY exciting!! Will see how that progresses.

I am really enjoying having Caleb home for the holidays and there is still another month to go!!! Yay :) Keep you posted of our fun :)

In the meantime be sure to pop over to Talyn's page to read all about his latest news :)

Cheers P

October 1st 2008...

Oh my.....time has flown since I last updated!! I see my last entry was after Caleb's last school holidays and now here he is, almost through another lot!

He is half way through the second week of his Sept holidays and loving every minute of it! We've had beach trips, park trips, library trips, movie days, swimming days, visiting friends, playing in the yard etc etc - it's been exhausting *wink*

Talyn really enjoys having his big brother home too. He's going to miss him when he goes back to school next week I bet. As will I.

The most exciting thing happening in the world of Caleb is probably the construction of his and Talyn's very first cubby house. My Dad (who is a plumber and very handy with all things building) is nearing retirement and was looking for a project to keep him busy. I suggested he could build the boys a cubby house for Xmas and surprise them with it Xmas morning if we were to assemble it after they were in bed Xmas Eve night.

Well.....that idea sort of worked?? Except the secret couldn't be kept for long as he is building it here, a little every day, and OH MY! This thing is the Taj Mahal I tell you what!! It's basically a miniature house - in proportion to an adult house only to Caleb's height. It's on stumps with a staircase entrance and slide exit. It has windows, doors, a verandah, a fully plumbed roof/custom made gutters etc etc and by the time it's finished it will have tile floors, a chalkboard wall and everything that opens and shuts! I've taken some progress pic's of it along the way so I'll post them when it's all done so you can see what we ended up with.

It is being built (I can even hear Dad out there hammering as I type this) in the backyard behind the pool area where we currently have all the swings, see-saws etc under a shady tree near some gardens. I can't wait to see the finished product!! For the first few weeks we told Caleb it was a tool shed but it soon became impossible to conceal what it really was. And boy is he excited!!!! Now I'll just have to ask Santa to bring some little table and chairs for it for Xmas *wink*

Speaking of Xmas....I'm going out next week to do all my Xmas shopping. Yes all of it!! I've got my lists all written and I can't wait to have it done super early for the year. Caleb's big presents will be the cubby house, an enclosed trampoline that the boys will share and a waterproof watch. The rest will be little things but I'm sure the big things will more then make up for that!

This Christmas we will have a brief morning thing here, have some breakfast and open a few presents and try out the trampoline etc then we travel to Fraser Island to spend the day with Simon's sister and his family. Our nephew Zach also celebrates his 1st birthday on Xmas day so we'll share some of that with him also before heading home in the early arvo for the rest of our Xmas celebrations, presents, visits and dinner. Should be fun! :)

I can't believe the next holidays Caleb has will be his last for prep year!! Boy the year has gone fast. He'll need new uniform shirts next year as the prep year had a different coloured one but then hopefully these new ones will do him for many years to come. Miss Bate has been such a wonderful teacher for him this year and I really hope he gets a great one next year too.

Caleb is really beginning to grow so fast now. He's tall and thin like his Dad and some day's I look at him and marvel at how fast he went from baby to big boy. He's entered the 'mom/dad' phase now, preferring to call us that more then Mummy/Mamma or Daddy/Dadda as he used to always do. I tried to resist the change, holding onto my mummy-hood for just a little longer...but alas....he's a big boy now. Soon to be six! I guess it was time :) Now if only I could get that rascal Talyn to call me Mummy instead of "Maarm!" Tee-he

Caleb continues to use his reward chart for pocket money and this week spend his $3.50 at Bunnings hardware store on a 1m length of gold chain! Last week it was a tool kit and a plunger (yes as in the toilet plunging variety - go figure???) The toys of boys huh?

That Caleb is a TOTAL snail freak!! Wherever we go he can find a snail and he'll have them crawling on his arms/clothes while he plays. He just loves them!!! Icky ;) I guess I'd best get used to the slimy world of little boys *wink*

Cheers P

July 15th 2008...

Ok....well another lot of school holidays are over so I've finally got some time to update you all on the latest in the world of Caleb ;)

What a busy holidays it's been too!! We've had days in the park, days with friends, days at the beach, visits to the library and video stores....we've even had a trip to Brisbane to see the dinosaurs at the museum!

Caleb said to me the other day "I wish I could see dinosaurs one day"....so we figured why not? We packed up the family and headed to my sisters house in Brisbane for the night and granted the boy his wish :)

We all caught the train into the city which was a thrill enough in itself for them both then we spent many hours wandering around the museum and art gallery and having lunch before catching the train back to my sisters house in the late afternoon.

Caleb was thrilled by the museum and even Talyn seemed to have a blast there! Caleb loved all the huge and even the moderate sized dino skeleton's....he loved the various animal exhibitions and of course it was no surprise he loved the lizards, spiders and the like there also. Both boys were exceptionally well behaved and I don't know if we've ever had a more fun day and as an added bonus....it was FREE!!! You can't beat that :)

The Art Gallery was a little stuffy to say the least and not very child friendly. Every time an employee spotted us with children they shadowed us like glue. I can understand there are valuable works of art in the building but if we take our children in there we are prepared to watch them closely ourselves. Caleb and I used to go to our local gallery every week when we went to the library and there he was always welcomed and made to feel that he could explore the art (without touching of course). But the Brisbane gallery - we couldn't wait to get them out of. Needless to say that will be our last visit there.

The whole weekend though was great to get away and Caleb enjoyed staying the night with his cousins and Aunty Debbie and Uncle Leroy. It was the perfect end to a perfect holiday.

And today was back to school once more. After having both boys homed for two weeks I actually was a little sad to send Caleb off to school again today....but he was really looking forward to catching up with his school friends and taking his photo album from the museum to present for show and share to the class.

We are still working through his speech therapy packages (see previous entry) and waiting for his more advanced hearing test appointment to come up in September. I think he is doing better with the 3 problem area's of his speech (K, Sh and he/she). The he/she side of things seems pretty fine now but he still slips up with the K and Sh sounds sometimes, using a T and S sound respectively. Next week I'm going to ring the speech therapist again and find out whether we just keep working on these one's or if we need new packages to move onto to. I also want to know when and if he will be reassessed again?

(Today Talyn was also referred to a speech therapist and a hearing assessment!!! See here for details)

Caleb has also started earning pocket money this week. He has a list of jobs to do each day which so far consist of making his bed, tidying his room, picking up his clothes and tidying the bathroom toys/towels/mats after he is done playing in there. He get's 5 cents for each job and if he has any need to be placed in time out then that's a 10cent debit for him. Last week was his first payday and he earned 95cents. He purchased a lolly pop with it then saved the remaining 45cents to go towards this week's pay ;)

It's so funny how little concept they have of the cost of things...the number of things he thought (incorrectly) that he could afford with his 95cents!!! Tee-he. Still it's really helping him to learn the value of money and the role of chores around the house. He's also more reluctant to misbehave and need time out if it means a cross on his chart and a 10cent penalty!

I don't want to restrict how he spends him pocket money though and I hope that in time he will learn the value of saving it to be able to afford bigger things. For long term savings he banks $5 every week into the school banking and doesn't get to touch that until he gets his first car so that's a good savings lesson for him also. $95 so far in half the school year - maybe by the time he get's his license he'll have enough for his car *wink*

Anyhoo....enough for now. Here are some links for you.

To see the pic's from our museum trip plus a few other new one's go to Caleb's Pic's Page.

To read the latest on Talyn go here or to see Talyn's latest pic's go here.

Cheers P

June 3rd 2008...

Wowzers...as usual the time has flown by since I last updated here.

I don't have a lot to say though today. Caleb is doing great. He's loving school....loving home life and just adores his baby brother.

As far as school goes, he finally saw the speech therapist that he was referred to by his Prep year teacher. Basically all was good except for minor delays in two area's. She has given us some packages to work on at home which look at the 'k' and 'sh' sounds and also his/her. I'm not sure if more will follow after them but that's it for now. He seems to work really well through the various exercises so I'm hoping that we can address this early and all will be good for his future schooling to come?

I'm still unsure about his hearing though? I know we had it tested by the Child Health Nurse recently but I'm planning to go to my GP for a second opinion. He is super sensitive to loud noises and is forever covering his ears when he expects one so that it doesn't 'hurt his ears'. Even at the annual show last month he was screaming and crying when we had to pass one particular ride that had some loud noises associated with it. Sure it was loud but no louder then others around it but he was absolutely terrified and distraught by it?? Definitely worth seeking a second opinion for I believe. Will keep you posted.

Otherwise though he is loving school! He has had a half dozen or more parties to go to for his school friends with several more lined up. I like to let him go to every one because I'd hate for him to miss out on the fun. He has about 3 male friends who he is really close to and they seem like lovely boys. I really hope those friendships endure :)

Like most big brothers, at times Caleb struggles with Talyn. Trying to understand when sometimes the rules are different for them both due to age/size restrictions etc. But we always try to ensure he understands why we make decisions we do and that he can just hold out for a bit longer until Talyn is communicating better and then the fun can really begin! God help Simon and I when those two boys get their heads together I say!!! Tee-he.

Cheers P

April 7th 2008...

Yikes another year gone by already! It's time again for me to create a new page for my little man I guess....but before I do that I'm going to finish this page off with his birthday adventures :)

Caleb had a blast for his 5th birthday this year. His day actually fell on Good Friday this year so he was home from school for the day anyway. After waking up to his mountain of presents we picked up his best friend Joel and met his Granny, Aunty Alicia and cousin Zach at McDonalds for breakfast and a play.

Due to Easter, our friends/Joel's parents had invited us to get together for Good Friday lunch down the beach so Caleb then had a ball playing there for ages in the park, on the swings and even enjoying a swim on the beach with everyone before coming home again for a well deserved afternoon nap.

I offered to cook him anything he wanted for his birthday tea but the little devil chose a happy meal from McDonald's instead - I can take the rejection :*tee-he* He does only have take away once a week normally so I guess he saw this as a great opportunity to get an extra happy meal into his week!

The day after his birthday was his party day. Caleb was so excited to invite school friends to his party this year but I was disappointed that only 1 of his friends was able to come, 1 was busy and the other 3 didn't even bother to RSVP?? We've had 3 school friend parties already this year and we've gone to every one of them. Even if you can't make it I don't think it's much to ask for an RSVP?? Still with all his other friends and family around we had a plenty big enough crowd that a few missing school friends didn't matter.

The only thing though - it rained! And by rained I mean it poured!! Not the best thing for a backyard pool party! Thankfully though we were saved by our decision to hire a giant inflatable slide for the party. Once the kids (and adults) got a look at that the party was in full swing. Everyone was having a blast on the slide...this thing was massive! (3m high at the top, 4m wide and 12m long). It was inflatable like a jumping castle with tonnes of bubbles and slipping along the slope before you landed plop in a little pool at the bottom.

With the slide to compete with there wasn't a lot of swimming in our actual pool but that doesn't matter...it was just so much fun! I even went down the slide a few times (fully dressed) and was soon dripping wet and covered in bubble suds :) We had hired the slide for 2hrs but due to the weather they gave us an extra hour for free before they came to collect it and by that time most were exhausted. We did also play pin the tail on the donkey and smacked the hell out of a plane shaped pinyata(?spell) which I filled with Chocolate Easter eggs for them to burst into :)

Presents....oh that boy was spoilt this year!! They ranged from clothes, PS2 Ninja Turtles game (his fave gift), books, tractors, transformers, paintings, shoes, dinosaurs, toys, vouchers and so much more. His Aunty Alicia even gave him an invite to a day on Fraser Island with her which he absolutely loved when he went the following weekend.

Check out all the party pic's here!

Of course the night of his party was also Easter Saturday so that night the Easter bunny came too - like he hadn't had enough sugar! We built a little nest for each of the boys for the Easter bunny to fill and also left out the usual snack of carrot and a dish of water. Caleb was most excited to wake the next morning and find his stash of sugar and chocolate eggs, toy bunnies, rabbits and even some china eggs to paint! He even ate chocolate for the first time this Easter. I bought him a soy chocolate egg anyway as I do every year but this year Caleb discovered real chocolate eggs and so long as he only had one small one a day it didn't seem to bother his dairy allergy too much...which is most unusual?? Touch wood he may actually be growing out of that allergy *fingers crossed*

And now Caleb is on holidays from school for the week. Term 1 is over and holidays have arrived! This week we've planned library, video store, Maze Mania, park and beach trips so I'm sure the days will fly by and school will be back before we know it.

Speaking of school....we had his first parent/teacher type meeting last week which brought an interesting result - Caleb was referred to a speech therapist!! The teacher could have blown me down when she said this as I was that shocked. Since Caleb was less then 2yrs old people have stopped me to ask how old he was and to comment on what good speech and vocab he had and here his teacher thought he needed therapy for it???

As it turns out she's just concerned that he is getting some first syllables wrong all the time...like he might say 'tat' instead of 'cat' for example. She said it was nothing serious and that early attention to it and some exercises from the speech therapist would do wonders. We also discussed with her our concerns regarding his hearing. Caleb has always been very sensitive to loud noise, blocking his ears and complaining over noises I didn't even thing were that loud? So he had a full hearing test last week and it all came back fine which was good.

We are interested to see what the speech therapist has in mind for him but also this has shown us what a dedicated and diligent teacher Caleb has. There's nothing worse then letting problems continue to go un-addressed in school. The earlier these things are caught the better I say. Caleb certainly loves school and I know that with a little attention to this issue he'll be past it in no time at all :)

Ok...well I guess I've raved enough for now. Be sure to check out the party pic's here and when I come back with his next entry it will be on a new page but I'll provide a link for it here :)

Toodles!

Cheers P

February 26th 2008...

Already we are into the 4th week of school! Yikes I don't know where the time went??

Caleb is loving it though which is great :)

The first few weeks we really noticed how tired and cranky he was of an afternoon and by the end of the week he was starting to ask for days home. However now he seems to have gotten into the routine of it all and is coping much better.

He enjoys his classes and especially the one's like music and Physical Education which I guess provide a break from the norm? His teacher, Miss Bate, seems firm but nice. Probably just what's needed for a rowdy class of prep year students...tee-he.

It's good how fast they make friends at that age. So far he has been to two birthday parties in the first three weeks and he's already planning who he will invite to his party next month! He's made a couple of firm friends already which is really cute to see.

For this years birthday party we are having a pool party at our place. We are going to hire a big inflatable water slide too so hopefully it will be plenty of wet fun for all. Caleb's not had a party at our house since his 1st birthday as all the other's have been at playcentres, McDonalds etc so we want to make his 5th a bit special.

I think he'll invite about 5 school friends + his other friends so about 10 kids all up. I'm a bit nervous of having school friends parents at home - pressure of hosting with strangers and all? But I guess there is no better way to get to know them better :) I must get to organising it too...book the slide....get some invites...plan the food and pool centered party games. It will be here before I know it!!!

Cheers P

January 30th 2008...

It happened.

My big boy Caleb has now begun school!

Yesterday he had his very first day of Prep at the local primary school across from our house. I must admit I left a lot of the booklist/uniform buying/book covering etc until the very last minute but it all came together in the end and to see him all dressed up on his first day was just magical!

(ps you can see pic's on his album page)

Everyone I spoke to about it before the big day expected that I would cry but I didn't. Caleb didn't either. I didn't feel sad at all. I felt excited for him and so proud of my little boy all growing up. It was a day of celebration here...not sadness.

Caleb's Granny (Simon's mom) and Poppy (my Dad), Simon, Talyn and I all assembled here that morning for the big day. We literally walk only about 50m if that to the crossing to cross the road to the school so it was with some amusement and pity that we looked at the hundreds of cars jostling for parking spaces out front. Instead we put Caleb's bag on his back, strapped Talyn into his push-a-long trike and away we went. Easy!

When we got there the room was packed with kids in bright new uniforms and shiny shoes....heaps of parents and some grandparents all trying to settle in the new students on their first day. His teacher is a lovely lady, as is the assistant teacher also. Almost everything on the booklist was shared material for the classroom (eg pencils, glue, tissues, etc) so we went around and put them in all the various boxes that were set out. The only items he had to actually name for his own personal use was a scrapbook, botany book, empty pencil case for notes and a library bag - that's it! So his school bag now literally contains only a hat (hehehe) as it's too small to fit his lunch bag/bottle combo in. So I've got to go out today and get a bigger one!

At Caleb's school the prep students wear a shirt of a different colour to all the other grades so that they can be easily recognised if they wander of into the wrong area. I did notice the door handle to the room is at adult height though and there is some fencing (although not total) around the prep area. It's a change from the secure environment of Kindy and day-care but one that is of course fitting to his expanding maturity. They have a prep dedicated play area and swings etc so they can play together without any big kids cramping their style.

It is really weird though to be able to see his classroom from our house. To know he is so close yet so far every day is surreal. The day is 9am-3pm so only 30minutes longer then his 3 days a week Kindy was last year but it must still be a long day for him. He came home yesterday totally wired/tired/testy all at once.

Simon finished work early yesterday to walk up with Talyn and I to collect him from his first day (Man does Talyn love a ride on his trike twice a day now!!!!). We thought he'd be full of stories but it was kind of like pulling teeth to get any details out of him. I guess it was a pretty overwhelming day for him. He did say he really enjoyed it though, liked his teachers and even saw some of his Kindy friends there also (2 of them are in his class). He really liked the little lunch/big lunch routine and being able to chose his own food from his lunchbox for each instead of having it handed out like at Kindy.

Later in the term they will begin morning assemblies and also things like library trips, tuckshop and music lessons once they have gotten over the initial settling in. Swimming lessons and weekly religious instruction class (same as I had in public schooling - one small session a week 30-60min's on it - at parents discretion) will begin next year in grade 1.

When Talyn begins daycare one day a week later this year I'm thinking I'll probably volunteer for some tuckshop work. committee work or crossing guard volunteer etc. I'd like to get involved in his school with him :)

But for now...the big day has begun. His schooling life has begun. Simon and I were discussing how this is the beginning of parents loss of power. Social/peer groups and pressure can totally change a child in so many ways. We are hoping he forges now what will be lifetime friendships with like minded, well behaved little friends. We can only hope for the best.

For now though...we are just so proud of our little school boy! *grins*

Cheers P

January 16th 2008...

At last! The silly season has finally drawn to a close and I am slowly getting back on track with day to day life.

Christmas was great! But how could it be anything else? Good times, good friends and family, good food, good fun. As you know we traveled to NSW this year to my sisters house for Christmas and my whole family were together for the first time since Xmas 1995 just after mum had died. This year was a much happier celebration. Caleb loved spending time with his cousins and Aunts and Uncles...and of course....loved the presents!!

He got spoiled as always this year. Lot's of toys like Bionicle's, TMNT, Hotwheels, etc....DVD's....clothes.....Walkie-talkie's....sit-on sandpit tractors and so much more. He got his first gift voucher too from Target and he really enjoyed the process of picking something out for himself. He even spent his last $5 of the $25 he had on a book as a gift for Talyn's birthday. How sweet is this kid?

Since Christmas we've celebrated New Year's Eve with a party at our house and Talyn's 1st Birthday also so it's been a big couple of weeks. And now in less then two weeks it's going to get even busier when my big boy goes to school!

We have just had prep year added to the school system here in the last year or two so that's what he'll begin in just under two weeks time, then go on to year 1 next year. We live across the road from the school so it will be nice and easy just to pop Talyn in his pram or in his push along bike and walk to the crossing. Much easier then all the poor mum's who park up to an hour in the afternoon heat just to get a park nearby. Have these women never heard of actually walking 100m???

Next week I have to go out and buy Caleb all his school books, school shoes, uniforms etc. A new chapter in our lives but one I'm looking forward to. Talyn and I will miss the little ratbag when he's gone 5 days a week but I know Talyn will enjoy the one on one time with me too so it's all good.

We've had a lot of fun these school holiday but boy has the time gone fast! What with Xmas, NYE and Talyn's birthday party during that time as well as two friends birthdays...well the weeks have just flown by. Today I took the boys down the Esplanade for a bike ride and while it was hot and exhausting they totally loved it so it was worth it. It's nice to do those sorts of things with the boys when I can.

Last month I went back to work (Mental Health RN) for one shift a week and that's been something I think we've all adjusted to well. I work 2.30pm - 11.00pm every Thursday and while I'm pretty tired on the Friday, at one day a week it's pretty easy to fit into our schedule without too much hassle so that's been great.

Ok....well enough for now. I'm off to read the lad a bedtime story then get an early night. I'll update here again after the first day of school. I think I'm getting a little misty eyed just at the thought of it! *wink*

Cheers P

December 13th 2007...

Holy Moly it's been far too long since I've updated here!!!!

Let's see what's been happening....

Well I guess the biggest event was yesterday....Caleb last day at kindy :( I can't believe it's over already!! Talyn was just 2wk's old when Caleb's Kindy began and I'm not sure where the year has gone but now Talyn is 11months old and Kindy is done!!

Yesterday was the break-up Christmas party which was great fun. Simon and I and Talyn all joined him there for the day which Caleb loved. They had a day of wet play outside before coming in to begin the party. They had graduation certificates presented to them along with all their artwork for the year, assessments and class photo's. Then Santa arrived and handed out a gift for every child (beautiful books supplied by the Kindy), and posed for photo's with each on his lap.

Then it was time for party games, Christmas songs and finally...the party food! I've never seen so much party food before! Simon and I had discussed Caleb's dairy allergy lately and the fact that no matter what we challenged it with we couldn't seem to get a reaction so we wondered if he had in fact grown out of his allergy. Well....after yesterday we now know he has not!!

He enjoyed the usual party foods and cakes which usually he can get away with. But I think his mistake yesterday were cheese cheezle chips. He had the dust of them all over his face and sure enough with in a few minutes he was red, blotchy, swollen and itchy all over his mouth, around his eyes and spreading down his neck. Thankfully the teacher had some antihistamine medicine I was able to administer before it got any worse. So the moral of this story...yes he is still allergic to dairy!!!! hehehe

I feel so sad that Kindy has ended as it was such a fantastic learning environment, he'd made his first read school friends and his teach Mr Lyndon was hands down the most fantastic teacher I have ever had the pleasure of meeting :( I can only hope that Talyn, who is booked into the same kindy, may get him also.

So now the countdown to Christmas begins. Caleb is enjoying our annual advent calendar which has a hand carved decoration behind each days door to add to the tree. We finally got our Christmas tree up last week (late this year!!!) and it looks lovely. Today I will finish my gift shopping so then there is only the shopping centre Santa photo to do and the nightly tours of the Christmas light displays to visit and we are ready for Christmas. As ready as you ever can be I guess!

This year we are travelling to my sisters place in NSW for Christmas. Caleb will be fine on the drive now as we mount the portable DVD player behind my headrest for him and he pops on headphones to watch the movies and that's the last we ever hear out of him...tee-he. It is so nice for him to have Talyn to travel with now though. I often look back and catch them holding hands between the two booster seats.....Ahh how sweet is that!!??

I know there is so much more to say but for now I am just too time poor to do it. So I think I'll leave it here for now and catch up on everything else with my post Xmas update.

Any chance Santa will bring me a cleaner, nanny, driver and all purpose clone for Christmas?? Snicker :)

Cheers P

October 8th 2007...

Another school holiday period is over and Caleb is now back to Kindy for his final term. I can hardly believe my little boy is going to be going to Prep year at school next year!! Crikey he'll be getting his first car before I know it - Gulp!

I think he enjoyed his holidays. We had trips to the beach with friends, plays at local parks, lot's of hired DVD movies and he even went to work with his Daddy one day. One weekend he and I went to the cinema to watch 'Surf's Up' together for some quality mommy and Caleb time. Caleb always enjoys trips to the cinema and this one was no exception.

As expected Caleb was the first into the pool this season. I thought it was freezing on the day but you know what kids are like with pools - if it doesn't have icicles then it's warm enough. Since then he's been in almost every day and even got to share Talyn's first ever swim with him also.

The swimming lessons that Caleb has had since he was 1yr old have paid off well. He can now get to the edge and out of the pool if he needed to and he's just beginning to master some basic strokes now such as backstroke and freestyle. Not enough that we don't still watch him with an eagle eye in the water but in our pool at least I feel fairly confident that he's safe. Still unless we are in the pool with him the rule is he must wear his muscles/arm floaties and then we know for sure he is good in them. I expect we'll probably end his lessons next year as by then he should have mastered a stroke well and also I think swimming lessons start up for him in school.

Some things never change in Caleb's world. He still absolutely loves his books! He has 3 stories before his afternoon nap every day and 1 story before bed at night. At the moment we are using the night time story time to read Charlotte's Web to him. Then he is free to read his own books in bed until lights off. Sometimes I creep in to watch him turn the pages and study each one as he goes, other times he's reading out the story as he knows it from memory. We still go to the library every two weeks where he picks out about 20 books so he never get's tired of the same old one's. And if he loves his books so much now just imagine what he'll be like once he can read them himself!

Like books his other great love that never fades is bugs/snails/insects. He's like the David Attenborough of the bug world *tee-hee* His bug catcher always has some weird and wonderful creature in it at any given time.

This time of year brings up good old Christmas bribery. You know how it goes "Don't forget Santa is watching to see if you are a good boy". And since he wants EVERYTHING he ever see's on TV as far as toys go (boys and girls toys alike) now instead of saying no I can just say "Well maybe Santa will bring that for you". This year I think he will really get a kick out of writing to Santa and getting a reply as the post office do for kids. I told him too that since we are going to spend Xmas with my sister in NSW that we'll have to write to Santa to tell him were to find us *wink*

One thing I can never be grateful enough for is what a fantastic big brother Caleb is! He is always the first to want to wake Talyn from his naps so they can play and if he's home they are pretty much always together. Like any big brother he does take toys off Talyn a lot but at the same time he will let Talyn play with almost anything he owns. The only thing he doesn't like is when Talyn makes it wet from mouthing things. I'm sure he's looking forward to when that stage ends :)

Kindy has done wonders in helping Caleb to build on his skills. He's improved in many areas such as singing, writing, colouring, imaginative play as well as motor skills such as skipping, jumping, using scissors and don't even get me started on his vocabulary. I was gob smacked the other day during story time when he asked me what the name of the "illustrator" of the the book was!!

Simon and I are both looking forward to him starting school as I think this is one kid who will definitely thrive in such a rich learning environment!

Those of you who have followed his 'poo drama' on this page will understand the joy I feel at being able to say that it is now over!!!! He is off all the bowel medication, drinking lot's of water and going every day again pain free. He's even finally learnt to wipe his own bottom so I no longer hear that sing song call of "Mum-my...come wipe my bot-tom". I am so glad the whole thing is over and I can tell you that I will never again take for granted the importance of children doing #2's.

The other thing Caleb is really focused on of late is healthy eating and exercise. He always wants to try the various exercises he see's me doing and seems to have a good understanding that healthy eating and exercise not only makes you big and strong now but also healthy for the long term. I am very conscious never to use the word diet in front of him though as that's one hang up he can do without. He probably doesn't notice Mummy shrinking when he's see's me every day but he does notice the healthy food I eat and how much I exercise or go to the gym. I think that's the best thing I can teach him for his future health.

Having said that he also takes great pleasure in lecturing his granny and our best mate Scotty about how bad smoking is for them, about how it's dirty and will make them sick! Hehehe I can't imagine who taught him such a thing *wink*

Well I think I'll leave it here for today. Check out Caleb's latest pic's here on your way out and go give your kids a big cuddle. They really are so precious :)

Cheers P

September 5th 2007...

I've created a new photo page for Caleb.

You can check them all out here.

Cheers P

August 23rd 2007...

Well I don't know that I have a lot to say this month about my big boy Caleb but having said that I'm sure I'll find enough to rattle on about for a while *wink*

We are all pretty sick in this house at the moment. Caleb seems to be mostly fighting his off though which is good. I really think the 9 months of breastfeeding he had really did wonders for his immunity because even when the rest of us get sick he rarely does. He's never missed a day Kindy from illness yet either so he's doing well.

Speaking of Kindy...he just loves it so much! His teacher Mr Lyndon is absolutely fantastic and is the kind of man who was born to be a teacher of little one's. Oh what I'd give for only a fraction of his patience and time for the kids *wink*.

The kids have recently welcomed visits from Police and Ambulance and I think the Fire Service will be visiting in the next week or so. Caleb recently got to go on the Kindy float for the street light parade along the Esplanade. It was quite a thrill to have him on a float and myself walking beside it through the crowds lining the streets on both sides.

When he's not at Kindy he enjoys trips to the library and park and we still go to playgroup once a week. That will end for him next year though when he begins full time Prep year at school. I can hardly believe my little man will be off to school next year!!! Where has the time gone? Fortunately we live across the road from the school so it's very convenient for us. I'll no longer have to drive them to Kindy each day but simply put Talyn in his pram and we can walk to school and back. That will be so much easier!

This weekend we celebrated Talyn's naming ceremony with family and friends. It was a beautiful day and you can read all the details of the day on Talyn's site. Caleb was very well behaved throughout the ceremony and enjoyed a very late night that night with all our friends here having a big party and he didn't get to bed until almost midnight - but he had so much fun and was very well behaved...as always :)

What's he into right now? Well TV/movie wise he's pretty taken with Transformers, TMNT, all things super heroes and loves a lot of the simple shows on Playhouse Disney and Nick Jnr. He's just begun to play Spiderman on Simon's PS2 but as it's meant for older boys I do want to get him a game more appropriate to his age. Something simple yet educational would be ideal. He is still an absolute book fanatic and has always had story time every day when he's home and every night before bed. Give the boy a new book and he thinks it's Christmas. I always try to bring him home a book from shopping rather then a lolly or toy that will be soon discarded. Books he can keep forever.

His never ending poo drama's seem to be finally nearing an end. He is now being weaned off the Movicol for his bowels and we are giving it only every second or third day for now until we can remove it entirely. I'll be glad when it's all over with as I hate for either of the boys to be on any medication unless absolutely necessary.

As Spring nears once more I have to get out and buy Caleb a new summer wardrobe. He'll be into the 4/5 this year rather then the 3/4 of last year. He's always been a smaller size on the bottom due to his teeny waist but even still...he's growing up so fast!!

He still comes out with the funniest things though. Here's a perfect example. "Mummy....why do boys have nipples?" "I'm not sure why Caleb" "I know...it's so when they lie down the blood doesn't come out of the hole's they'd have if the nipples weren't there". Yes...indeed!

Hehehe

The site I used currently to share photo's is closing down so if you visit it using the link above left and find you cannot see the pic's don't worry...I'm in the process of moving to a new site and I'll have the links updated with a new address as soon as I'm done. Stay tuned for new pic's to come in the next week or so :)

Cheers P

July 5th 2007...

All goes well in the world of Caleb :)

He is enjoying his school holidays at the moment during this two week break from Kindy. Well....while he is enjoying our time together he is still asking when Kindy starts back and why he has to wait so long to go! So funny to hear that as he would NEVER have said that about day-care. It still surprises me how much he loves Kindy compared to old day-care.

We have some Kindy friends who have stayed with us for the holidays though. Two guinea pigs that Caleb has called Ming-Ming and Tuck (from the WonderPets cartoon). He has loved having them stay and it has served my purpose very well *wink* Both his Poppy and his Daddy wanted to buy him guinea pigs of his own but having had these stay for a couple weeks have changed there mind. Maybe down the track when he can care for them himself he could have some but for now it's just another job I don't need. I'd be happy to care for them again on the next holidays but not on a full time basis.

Today he and I are having some special one on one time and going to the cinema together to watch Shrek 3 while Granny comes to stay with Talyn. It's important to me for him to see that he is still a priority for me, despite all the time I need to spend with Talyn, and this is a fun way to do something just the two of us :)

Two weeks now until we go away for our weekend trip to Australia Zoo. Caleb is sure to love it and I'm really looking forward to it myself. We went when he was about 18months but I know he'll love it so much more now!

Poo drama's...well they cease to exist while he is still on the laxative but he goes back to the pediatrician at the end of this month to work out the regime to gradually reduce and remove it. Hope that goes ok?

Until then....it's happy families around here. I had my 32nd birthday last week and Caleb bought me a CD and spoiled me all day. Gotta love it! :)

In the meantime we just have to see out the end of this week then Kindy is back Mon-Wed, playgroup is back Friday's and swimming lessons start again on Saturdays. Then it's back to hectic life as we know it *wink*

Cheers P

June 19th 2007...

Went back to see the pediatrician again yesterday for Caleb's poo drama's. Nothing new really, we continue with the daily Movical laxative, continue with the exercises the OT gave us and continue to wait for the surgical review. It sounds like he'll be on the laxative for a month or more before they begin to wean him off it but they assure me it's safe and not habit forming so all is ok in that regard.

Otherwise he's great. He is absolutely loving his little brother. No one can make Talyn scream and squeal in delight the way that Caleb does. They both just love each other to bits and it's so sweet to watch.

What's not so sweet is the times he's hurt Talyn recently. On one occasion he stood on the lounge above Talyn on the floor, yelled "Ninja time!" and threw a small toy in his face! The second time he balanced a toy above him on his playmat arches and surprise - surprise...it fell on his face. The first time he got into so much trouble that I think he scared himself and the second was an accident so what can you do?? We've spoken to him at length about how fragile a baby is and how we also had to be so careful with him when he was a baby too.

It's one thing for them to roughhouse when Talyn is older but for now I'm torn between trying to trust him with his brother and keep my cool when he does hurt him...and wanting to protect my baby at all costs?? It's a fine line to tread without causing jealousies or imbalances but it's one I guess we'll get better at as we go along.

For the most part I guess Caleb is just so eager to really play with him that it's hard sometimes to understand that Talyn can't play quite as rough? Only time will tell how it goes I guess. If Talyn ever sleeps in of a morning, Caleb is begging me to wake him up so they can play and in the car it's so sweet to hear Caleb chatter away to Talyn as we drive instead of just me :) I know he love's his little brother to bits and as they get bigger they'll only get closer....if they can both survive to that point!

Caleb is loving Kindy so much and is already saying he doesn't want Kindy to stop next week for the two weeks June/July holidays! Hehehe ..... he would never have said that about day-care! I have volunteered to take the 2 Kindy guinea pigs home for the holidays though to look after so I'm sure that will give him something to take his mind off it *wink* Apparently the last lady took home 3 and only brought back 2 after her dog ate one so I guess we can't go too wrong with caring for them in comparison huh? :) Let you know how we go.

Cheers P

June 6th 2007...

Well I thought it was high time I got back online to give you all another quick update on the boy and his bowels *wink* I know it seems like that's all I talk about lately in regard to Caleb...but believe me - it has dominated every aspect of his and all of our lives for it's duration and only now is life finally beginning to settle back to normal. Whatever normal is??

Caleb is now going to the toilet for number 2's again himself every day. Often several times a day. No tears, no complaints, no pain in his little face...it's a blessing. He remains on the daily dose of laxative until we go back to see the pediatrician again next week, however the OT tell's us that it is likely to be weaned off over the next 3-4months. Boy nothing happens fast with all this does it???

The OT, Kate, has been an absolute god send in all of this. She co-ordinates all the other services and needs and is just such a lovely lady. Last Friday she arrived armed with a book and exercises for Caleb. The book is called "The adventures of Plopsy the Poo"!!!! It really helped to reinforce to us just how many kids must actually go through this if such a book even exists! It's a colouring book also and what 4yr old boy is not going to be perversely thrilled by a book about poo...hehehe. It's all about how Plopsy can hurt if he doesn't get enough water intake to help him slide down the slippery side and out the big round door (!!). Hilarious!

She has also given Caleb exercises to do on the toilet to help re-strengthen the muscles she says have been weakened by the drama of the last two months. He has to use a step for his feet again and take time to blow balloons and party blowers etc for extended periods of time on the toilet so as to work those tummy muscles again. Caleb thinks the whole thing is heaps of fun so happily does as she has asked.

Our only real challenge has been pushing the fluids with him. We try to offer water whenever we can and have limited the soy milk as Kate asked but it's been hard. She said to aim for 1.5L a day but that's huge for him. It's not that he doesn't want the water itself...it's just that he's not a big drinker of anything really. Much like his mum I guess?

Still...things are definitely improving and it's FANTASTIC! The loveable little Caleb of old has come back to us after week's of bad behavior and uncharacteristic personality traits. I guess being full of you-know-what can really play havoc on your moods huh? hehehe

Now we await the surgical review to have a look inside to make sure the suspected fissure has healed then I guess we'll slowly reduce the laxative until all is well in the world of Plopsy once more :)

Cheers P

May 23rd 2007...

Dare I say it?

I think it's finally over!!

Caleb has been going alone for number two's for about 4 or 5 days now. Every day, several times a day. It's gone back to completely normal! He goes alone, no crying, no screaming or holding it back, he calls out to have his bottom wiped and that's it? It's nothing short of amazing after almost two months of toilet hell. No more blood, no more pain - it's perfect :)

He's still having his daily dose of maintenance level laxative powder for up to 3 weeks but I think it's past. So long as there is no more hard or large things to pass that could bring back the pain and fear.....I think he has his confidence back!

Will await to hear from OT, pead's and surgical team because I'm happy to cancel everything if they are? However I wonder if the investigation into the bleeding is still not worth following up anyway? Not sure what will happen but suffice to say I'm a happy girl!!

Caleb asked me the other day "Mummy are you happy I do poo-poo's all by myself again?"...."Yes Caleb" ... I said ..."Mummy is VERY happy" :)

He is so doing us proud at Kindy too. He's really a sponge for knowledge at this stage and is constantly bombarding us with questions of late. About the world, planets, people's motivations for their actions, numbers, letters and so much more. He has been able to write his name for a couple of months now but he has really advanced quickly from there in just the last week or two. He learnt how to write cat and dog in about 30minutes the other night and can still write them now two days later. His teacher told me that Caleb had led many other children to want to write too and he's become a little leader in that regard. The other morning while there he asked me to write drain, castle and playdough for him to copy, which he did, then promptly pointed to the chart on the wall behind me and pointed out that it also said playdough in big letters along the bottom.

Simon has been spending time with him each night practicing writing and showing him any words that he wants to know.

We work hard to give him honest answers to all his questions and what we don't know we want to help him to find out with the use of books, internet etc. This week I got him a desk world globe off Ebay to help with his questions on geography. Not least of all because Mummy is TERRIBLE at geography *snicker*

We are so proud of Caleb and I can only hope his desire for knowledge and new skills continues on for many years to come!

Cheers P

May 20th 2007...

We had a breakthrough!!!!!!!

*Beware* - this entry will talk almost exclusively about bowel motions so give it a miss if you can't stomach it .... wink

Last night, after 5 days of laxatives and 4 days of no number 2's.....he finally went!!

Thankfully he made it to the toilet in time. In fact I took him there and insisted he go after he admitted he was still continuing to hold it back. His tummy was huge and he was starting to have small spills in his pants so I knew he simply could not hold it much longer.

He went and it was total liquid. I think he was so anxious that it would hurt as usual and also I suspect he was not sure just what to expect when we kept talking to him about liquid poo's so he had continued to avoid it. Once it started he was great. He sat there for ages and passed heaps of liquid plus heaps of wind. His tummy looked normal again and he was so thrilled to tell us it didn't hurt at all.

He said next time he'd just do it normal now as he know's it doesn't hurt - but as he has said that many times in the last two months of toilet hell we tended to remain a little skeptical of his claims. However...a miracle happened!

This morning he got up, went straight to the toilet, did more then just called out for Daddy to wipe his bottom at the end - just like old days!!!!

I was so, so, so thrilled! I cannot tell you what a relief it was after him not having been to the toilet for a #2 without screaming, pain, crying, medicine and chaos for 6-7weeks! And then this afternoon he did the same thing again...off he went, did his thing. Simple -as it once used to always be :)

Dare I say it? I think the boy has his poo Mojo back?? Now we have to cut back the laxative to a daily maintenance dose for the next 2-3wk's but I'm hoping, hoping, hoping things may now return to normal. The OT will still follow up with him and he still has his surgical review pending but I'm hoping all that will prove unnecessary now he has some confidence back??

Keep you posted :)

Cheers P

May 17th 2007...

Waiting.......???

3 days doses of the Movical now with now action.

Something tells me that when it happens it's going to be messy!

*Gulp*

Cheers P

May 15th 2007...

After following up with the OT yesterday she again sent me back up to the hospital to see the pediatrician again rather then my GP to get something happening re the laxative.

After a tummy x-ray showed that he was in fact very impacted with poo inside he is to begin a course of increasing laxatives today. It's a powder form that we make into a drink and apparently is very powerful/explosive - oh boy does that sound like fun....Not!!!

He has to have an increasing dose each day until his bowel motions turn to water (isn't this a nice topic)...then he drops back to a daily maintenance dose of one sachet a day for 3 wk's to keep things very lose and therefor minimize the pain.

He also confirmed that we have been referred to the surgical team who will do either a manual or small camera scope exam of inside his back passage to check for any fissures or whatever else may be causing the bleeding.

As an added bonus he said don't use the ($30) tube of numbing cream he prescribed on Friday night but to instead buy a different one (xylocain gel). I hope they may let me return the other unopened tube but I wont' hold my breath.

So that's the latest step in the saga. Baby steps I guess but I'm hoping this laxative will at least minimise the pain and bleeding until we get to the next step??

Cheers P

May 14th 2007...

More poo updates *wink* I feel like all I'm talking about here is Caleb's bowels of late but then I guess it has sort of dominated our lives just recently. And if I don't keep up with the updates here I lose track of what I have and haven't told everyone.

So the OT came on Friday and she was fantastic! So enthusiastic, friendly and definitely experienced in this problem. There were even pre-printed forms she used for the history collection on the problem and diagrams of different poo's etc (hehehe) to chose from so they obviously encounter this problem a lot.

Short version is she sent us up to the hospital on Friday night to see a pediatrician. He felt his tummy and said it wasn't impacted and checked his bottom externally and said both were fine right now. However they were concerned by the fact that he was bleeding quite heavily probably 80-90% of the time he goes so they suspect he could have an internal anal fissure (like a split inside that opens and bleeds each time poo travels past it)...hence the pain and bleeding.

So they have referred him to the surgical team for review of that. I'm guessing they may either do a manual or a little camera type exam of inside to see what's going on. And I'm so relieved about that as I worry about the bleeding and the fact the GP seems to be so unwilling to do anything to get to the bottom of this (pardon the pun!)

This afternoon I am taking him back to the GP to insist on some stronger laxative of some type in the meantime so at least he can pass what he need's too with minimal pain until we get this further sorted out. I cannot stand one more day of him crying and sobbing in pain and fear on the toilet and I won't be leaving the GP until I get a satisfactory solution.

Otherwise he has daily lactulose (a stool softener) and the OT assessed his diet and said that while the food was great he needed to drink more water and less milk so we are encouraging that also. He has zinc and caster oil cream for the outside to keep things from getting sore and we are going to introduce pear juice back into his diet to help keep him as regular as we can. The hospital Dr also prescribed a numbing cream for his bottom to use just before he goes but the logistics of that will prove tricky since he holds it for hours if he can then when he finally has to go he can hold it no longer so when to apply the cream will be interesting???

However I do feel better with the OT involvement and I feel confident that something will happen and that people are going to look into this and that we are doing all we can to get our little man past this ASAP.

Now onto non-poo matters....*wink*.....

Yesterday was Mother's Day and I was very spoilt by Caleb. He and Daddy made me a card on the computer. He also made a shopping list notebook attached to a decorated fridge magnet backing for me at Kindy. And he chose a bath bomb from the Kindy mothers day stall for me also. The funny thing is we all had to bring in a gift worth about $3 for the stall then also give the child a gold coin to 'buy' us something. Big surprise my little man 'bought' the very same bath bomb that he saw me contribute to the stall...hehehe Bless him!

He is so loving Kindy right now and really looks forward to going the 3 days a week that he attends. It makes such a lovely change from daycare drop off screaming. He just loves his male teacher and makes him heaps of drawings and letters to take to him at Kindy. Tomorrow evening is mom's night there so Caleb and I will go in for a play together with other mom's and kids while Daddy stays home with Talyn and Caleb and I can enjoy some one on one time. I'm really looking forward to it.

Tomorrow his Kindy have an excursion to another Kindy for a theatre show which he's really excited about and next week we have our annual local show that we will all go to as a family on the show day public holiday on Friday. It's going to be so much fun for him this year now that he's that bit older :) Can't wait!!

Cheers P

May 9th 2007...

Another bowel update....The Occupational Therapist (OT) comes to see him on Friday!!! Can't wait. She said she will begin with complete history taking and will examine him for any impaction going on inside. If she finds it she will be referring him to a pediatrician at the hospital for a complete clean out etc before we progress to behavioural interventions etc.

Finally someone is going to take this seriously!!!!

Keep you posted.

I know it's long overdue but I've finally updated his online album with some new pic's too for those of you who wish to take a peak. Visit here for a look.

Cheers P

April 25th 2007...

Another quick update on the ongoing saga of Caleb's bowels *wink*

But before I get to that let me tell you about the 4yr check up he had with the child health nurse....he blitzed it.

He was tested on everything from word/picture recognition, colour recognition, fine and gross motor skills, hearing, spacial recognition, writing, colouring and block building skills etc - you name it they test it.

And he did bloody awesome! She just kept saying that she'd never had a four year old do so well and twice checked with me again on exactly how old he was! I can tell you that made his Mummy feel very happy :)

Here's a perfect example of how it went.

Nurse: "Can you tell me what your name is...?"

Caleb: "C.A.L.E.B, that spells Caleb"

hehehe

And while building what she had asked him to build with some little wooden blocks he stops to point out to her the number 4 on one of the blocks and tells her that's how old he is.

hehehe

She also said his attention span was fantastic and that his behavior and willingness to participate in the process was better then any 4yr old she'd tested before. Hmmm righto then.

But how do you get the little bright spark to poo huh?

We still don't know? We have stopped using the microlax mini-enema's now and simply let him go until he can't hold it any longer - usually two days. He'll pace around all day, holding his aching tummy, squeezing his bum cheeks and is unable to sit down but sooner or later it has to come out. Of course it still does so in a deafening crescendo of screams...I'm sure the neighbours must think we are torturing him! He doesn't scream because it hurts any more...it's just that he thinks it will. Either that or he is now hooked on the drama of it all? Yesterday while at the beach with his Daddy fishing he ended up doing it in his pants because he had held it that long!!!

Thankfully the nurse suggested a referral to an Occupational Therapist for us. I expect she'll manage it from a behavioural point of view (even though our own reward chart seems to be doing little to help the situation) but quite honestly I wouldn't care if she told me to stand on my head every time he goes to the toilet - I'll do ANYTHING to get past all this as it is absolutely killing me - slowly but surely. Aaaargh!

Cheers P

April 15th 2007...

An update on the poo drama's of last entry....hehehe.....he finally went!!!!!

This morning....thank the lords - Caleb did a poo!!! For those who read the previous entry you'll know we've struggled with his bowels all week. First it got sore...then he started holding it for fear of pain on passing number 2's....then he got constipated.....then he held it even more and so it went on until it was a nightmare. We've not left the house for 4 days so he could stay near a toilet and all day was a chorus of whining "I need to do poo"....but then saying "I'm scared to do poo" and refusing to try and screaming bloody murder if we tried to force him to try.

This morning after several more hours of screaming/crying/whinging I finally coaxed him to go (honestly I've spent hours in the loo with him over recent days!!!). He realised it didn't hurt this time and just like that I think it's all over! I won't relax totally until he does he first one drama free but I'm hoping it's all good now as he is back to Kindy tomorrow and god knows the last thing I need right now is them sending him home because of it :)

Who knew poo's could be so problematic!!! *wink*

Cheers P

April 13th 2007...

Finally!! I have been meaning to get this update done since Caleb's birthday but something always seemed to come up. I have 20min's to spare now so figured I'd do it right now before something else comes up again :)

Well what can I say? My little man is now 4 years old! I couldn't describe how fast that time has gone but I can say that I treasure every little memory it has created :)

His birthday itself was great. Simon took the day off work and we spent it all together as a family. He got heaps of presents (as usual) from us and others but we were able to space them out over the day. Our main present to him was a new 'big boy' bike. His old one was a 12" so we moved up to a 16" inch and he thought it was just fantastic!! We got a groovy yellow dinosaur model. After unwrapping a few smaller gifts we brought out the bike then hit the Esplanade for him to have a big ride on it. Then for lunch we took him to McDonalds where he wolfed down his food so he could hit the playground there. Throughout the day he had his Poppy and Granny come with pressies and to spend time with him and the day just flew by.

That weekend we had his party on the Saturday at an indoor play centre that he loves. We had my sister and her family stay from out of town too so as well as his party he enjoyed slumber parties with his cousins in his room - chatting until all hours of the night ;)

The party went great! I made a big number 4 birthday cake for him (soy of course) and other then that and the party bags everything else is taken care of - you just have to show up. Too easy! As with all prior years he did not eat his cake. He had a little nibble but due to his allergies he never has developed a taste for sweets/cakes etc. We had quite a crowd though and he was thrilled with his present haul.

Overall his gifts were many and varied. Everything from bikes, magnetix, fishing rods and tackle boxes, games, puzzles, books and creative projects like glass paints, ceramic pot plants to plant and grow and zoo animals made from playdough. Of course there were also some Superman toys and clothes thrown in too for good measure. All up he was a very spoilt boy!

After running absolutely wild with all his friends (including a little girl friend from Kindy that he asked to invite - his first time of inviting a school friend to a party!!) we came home with some of the friends and family for pizza for tea and more play. By the end of the day I know one little 4 year old who was out like a light!

Since then he's taken great joy in doing the creative presents over time. He painted a ceramic dog pot plant and now has his own little flower garden in it. He created jungle animals with his glass paints on plastic cut-outs and has made his play-dough zoo animals many times over. He really enjoys playing memory with us (and truth be told often beats us fair and square and has done for months now...hehehe).

He continues to thrive at Kindy and is really getting into letters and numbers now. He's been spelling his name for a while and pointing out the letter "C" everywhere for a few months but now does the same for the number 4 "That's how old I am!"...hehehe We all went in last week to watch him in his Easter Hat Parade at Kindy and to get visit from the Easter Bunny :)

We continued our new family tradition of the birthday letter. Each year since his birth, Simon and I write Caleb a letter on his birthday. We talk about the year that was and everything that he is doing with us right now and we hope one day to give them all to him on his 18th or 21st birthday? I'd loved to have had something like that...but then being a boy he might be like "yeah whatever!".hehehe

Caleb has continued to adjust to Talyn in the house. I have found that he has grown closer to Simon since Talyn's arrival as Simon is the one more likely to have time to do the fun things with him while I am tied down to breastfeeding Talyn. I hope to balance this out more once Talyn goes onto the bottle and I can leave him with Simon while Caleb and I have some one on one time together.

Speaking of time together...this week has been Caleb's first 'school holidays' as such from Kindy. Before now he always went to day-care all year round except of course public holidays. It took a little for him to grasp the idea of holidays not meaning we were actually going somewhere but I think he get's it now. It sure has been a trying week for Mummy and I shudder to think what months over the Xmas holidays will be like - Eeek!

These holidays have of course been for Easter and we had a great time. Simon was able to take 4 days off over the holiday period and we had lot's of great family time together. Since the Easter bunny knows Caleb can't eat chocolate due to his dairy allergy *wink* he was very considerate in finding alternatives. The night before we made a nest for the bunny and left out some carrot and water for him to have a snack on. The next morning Caleb was thrilled to find the nest full of books, paintable plaster eggs, jelly and lolly type Easter treats and even one soy chocolate egg (which as usual he didn't like...hehehe). We also got little plastic eggs and filled them with miniature fluffy chicks and hid them around the house for him to find. Others brought him lollipops, toys, crayons, books and blocks too so he was a very lucky boy!

The only down side of recent times is an ongoing problem with Caleb's bum *hehehe* We think he got a little tear inside from a hard/large #2 recently because it became painful for him to use his bowels and there was occasionally a little bit of blood when we wiped. The Dr agreed with us and prescribed some stool softener for him to take. Problem is....he got so scared of it hurting that he started holding it and now he's constipated!!! Ugh! We had to give the poor little fellow a microlax mini enema type thing last night to get him to go as his tummy was hard and he was in agony. So that fixed the problem temporarily but he is still scared to go and won't go again since, despite needing to and trying to. It's hard to know if he is in fact still constipated or if he is stopping himself at the last moment due to pain??? It's all been just horrible and I've never spent so much time in the toilet just holding his hand and encouraging him. How do you explain to a 4yr old that a little pain now is better then a hell of a lot later?? I just hope the medicine kicks in soon to at least make it easy to pass so that he can avoid the constipation and somehow get the original problem to heal?? Not a nice topic I know but that's where it's at *wink*

Ok...well enough for now. I'm just glad I've finally found the time to do this update that I've meant to do for weeks (as it is I've written this over 3 days).

I'll also be updating his photo album this weekend with birthday and Easter snaps so will let you all know when that's done.

Cheers P