All Better

Well, the strep throat is gone, and last week we were finally able to get in to Ben's Dr. to get some antibiotic for his sinus infection. After just 2 doses his nose stopped running and he seemed to be his happy self again. He even seems to enjoy taking the pink stuff and has not given me any problems.

This weekend was John's last basketball game. They played Syracuse early Saturday morning, and the weather was bad. It was still snowing lightly and the roads were snow packed and slick. Right after we went by, there was a head-on accident just South of Elmwood that required 3 ambulances. It was no one we knew, but we still felt bad for them. At least there were no fatalities. Anyway John's team lost the first game by 2 and tied the second game. Since they only have 8 players, the boys were pretty tired by the end of the second game. Overall they had a great season. I was really proud of how much they learned. I was also proud of Randy for trying to teach them the basics, even though they only got to practice once per week.

Saturday was a Little Star's Swimming event at the Cooper Y in Lincoln. Ben loved the water and laughed and kicked and had fun. At first he did not really want to stand in the water, but he soon got over that. John came too and had fun playing with the sister of a girl with Down syndrome. Noah was not making good choices on Saturday and got to stay home with Dad. I think they had fun at home too.

Last week my cousin brought over some of her son's outgrown clothes. Included in the box were a bunch of ties. We spent most of the weekend practicing how to tie a tie. Both boys sported ties to church that weekend.

RSV, Strep, and the New Tooth

Last weekend Ben started to run a low grade fever. He had a bump in his mouth and a couple of loose diapers and we thought finally a tooth is ready to come in! But the weekend came and went and there was no tooth and the fever went away. Then the fever came back along with a very runny nose, coughing and wheezing. We went to the Dr. last Wednesday (not our regular Dr. but one of his associates) who looked at Ben with his red cheeks, and runny nose and announced that since no one at daycare had RSV he probably had conjunctivitis. Now I have seen kids with pink eye, and this was just not one of them. Neither of my other boys ever had RSV, so I did not know much about it, but after about 5 minutes of research on the Internet, I was convinced that he had it. So I called nurse back the next day and was told that although he probably does have RSV, they won't do anything for him anyway, because his O2 levels were OK.

Baby who did not feel very good.

Tuesday was the Science Fair. John did " Which brand of Popcorn pops the most kernels" and Noah did "Which paper airplane flies the farthest" They both got blue ribbons, and Noah even got a medal for a perfect score. Way to go boys!


The same day that we took Ben in, I called my Dr. to see if I could get my sore throat checked out. Sure enough, I had strep. So we took Thursday off and then had a snow storm on Friday, so we had a nice long weekend vegging out in front of the TV.

Randy's sore throat started on Saturday, then last night John started complaining about a sore throat, and had a fever too. We could not get in until 4:30 t0day with John, but he has strep too, and can't go back to school until Wednesday. Since Randy and I go to the same Dr. they just called in a prescription, so he got off easy.

Noah has complained of a sore throat and a tummy ache too, but has not gotten a fever yet. He has still been running around the house acting like a crazy child, so I don't think he is suffering from his illness. The little stinker is probably the carrier.

Ben is still having problems with congestion. He seems to have a good day, then a bad day, a OK night then a very bad night. Randy was trying to comfort him last night, while I was trying to rest and all of a sudden he started yelling, "I feel a tooth, I feel a tooth". I checked and it was true. There is a tooth coming in on his bottom right side. Even with all the sickness, he seems to be progressing. He started to sway when some music came on the TV as if he were dancing, tried to clap, is dropping toys in his container, and is doing a much better job of pivoting and catching himself when he falls over.

The boys both got hair cuts last weekend (that's probably why we are all sick). Noah wanted me to give him a Mohawk, so I did, then took a picture before cutting the rest off. Here is a picture of him hamming it up for the camera.

Here is the Willey clan at John's Basketball game last weekend.

My poor neglected blog

The computer has been acting up and not wanting to open any pdf's and it won't let me remove or download any software. It also does not want me to download any pictures. Can't wait for the new operating system to be introduced so I can get a new computer.
The last few weeks we have continued with more Basketball, thumb sucking and therapy.
The boys are really coming along and learning a ton in basketball. Randy is always trying to think up new plays, and the ones he has them running this year are working great. Here is a picture of the team that we took this weekend in Weeping Water. They won both games this weekend; Saturday against Murray and Sunday against Weeping Water. The game on Sunday was scheduled for 5:00. Some of the dad's were bummed that they missed the beginning of the Super Bowl, but at least they caught the end.


Noah is still trying hard not to suck his thumb but just does not have the will power while watching TV or when it is getting close to bedtime. We had not been using the zip ties at night, but then I found out that he was taking the gloves off and then putting them back on when John's alarm was going off. The last couple of nights we have been using the zip ties to hook gloves on both hands and he has been going to sleep fine. He did look a bit rough the first two mornings, but I think he is finally getting used to it. I showed him some pictures on the web of kids who have messed up their teeth from thumb sucking, but it did not seem to have any impact. It is just such a hard habit to break.

Ben did really good at his afternoon therapy session last week. Much better than when we tried in the morning. He is side sitting well and can move back to center fine, with no assistance, but just has not quite gotten how to get in and out of sitting yet. When he get on his knees he will rock a little, but he really does not like being on his knees.

On the craft front, I have a couple of orders left from Christmas yet to fill. One is to make another strand for a name bracelet. Since I did not make the original, I am having a hard time finding beads to match. I also have a couple more name doilies left to crochet. They are taking a bit longer as I find myself too tired once I get Ben to sleep to work on them, and it is pretty hard to work with fine thread when he is awake.

Can you believe it has been 10 years?

I know I'm not ready to have a 10 year old. That means that I will be that much closer to having a teenager. EEK! Ready or not, I will have a 10 year old tomorrow.

We started our weekend of celebration yesterday by going to Skate Daze in Omaha for a play event with the OPDSN. I was hoping we would get to meet a few more parents, but we got there a bit late, and most of the parents were chasing down their kids to take them home by the time we got there. Maybe next time.

Next we had a late lunch at the Amazing Pizza Machine. The boys enjoyed glow golf, go carts and lots of games. John did very well with the Deal or No Deal game where he got down to 2 suitcases for the 2 highest amounts (200 and 400 tickets). He ended up taking the deal for 300 which was a good thing because he had 200 in his case. After playing the games the boys had another light snack at the buffet, before going shopping.

Ben enjoyed all the noise and action. He was showing off his sitting skills at Skate Daze, and enjoyed sitting up in a big chair at the pizza buffet. He had apple sauce, banana pudding, jello and bread.

Today we enjoyed the lunch buffet at Mahoney State Park. Grandma and Grandpa, and Uncle Steve and his family were able to join us to celebrate both the B-day and Grandma and Grandpa's 45th anniversary.

Tomorrow will be treats at school, and the final day of the celebration.

Noah is continuing to have a rough time with giving up the thumb habit. He can have a rational discussion about it during the day, but at night time when he really needs to suck it, it is a whole different story. We may have to break down and get the plate put in yet.

I'm having problems getting the pictures downloaded, but will add them to this post as soon as I can get the battery recharged on the camera.

It's time for Basket Ball and more

It was a pretty busy week for the Willey family. John had his first basket ball game last weekend in Murray during and ice storm. Just getting there and back was exciting. They won 46 to 4. I think they scored more points during that game than they did all last season.


Noah saying, put me in Dad... I want to play!


John inbounding the ball.


Coaches Rick and Randy inspiring the boys.


John passing the ball instead of shooting, like he was instructed to do. (We were up by 25 points at this point)

Baby Ben had an appointment at Hand Prints and Foot Steps, a pediatric therapy clinic in Lincoln. He was evaluated for positional plagiocephaly - aka a stiff neck. They thought maybe he could not turn his head to the right very well due to tight muscles. They found that while he can turn his neck farther to the left than he can the right, it was not really a big problem. He is also to the age where he is not about to let anyone stretch him out, so we will just keep trying to make him look to the right more by putting his toys on his right, laying him on his right, etc.


Here is a picture of Ben enjoying his bath.

Noah also had a pretty good week. While he is still struggling with the thumb sucking, he is at least trying. He went to sleep 3 night in a row with out sucking his thumb. He still woke up in the night and took his glove off, but at least we know now that he can do it. We are very proud of his efforts.

Here is Noah snuggling with his baby brother.

John also played in Syracuse yesterday. They played two back to back games against Syracuse's A and B squads at 8:30 in the morning, ugh! They won the first game by 4 points, but lost the second game by 4 points. Overall they did really good. When they listened and executed their plays well, they got an open shot every time. They did not always make the shot, but hey, they are only 4th graders. The point is just to learn and have fun.

We are off to another game in Louisville now. They are always very tough competitors, so hopefully we can stick with them.

Christmas Picutres, a bit late...

Finally got around to uploading some pictures from the Christmas celebration we had last weekend at Randy's parents house. His sister Pam was there with her 3 Italian greyhounds. Brother Steve came with his wife Shannon, and kids Emma and Sam. These pictures are from the gift opening.

Grand kids eagerly awaiting the adults getting their act together so they could open presents.

Ben showing off a bow in his hair.

Aunt Pam and her new frog.

Riley in the Christmas Spirit.

John with his new Webkinz.