Big Snow

Sorry for the month-late post . . . we got 2 feet of snow the weekend before Christmas, it was BEAUTIFUL, and so much fun because the whole city was quiet, no traffic and people just enjoying themselves walking around in the snow and sitting by the fire. That doesn't happen much!

The sunny pictures are from they day after, they are all out of order.

In the snow fort at the park, it even hand windows (above) and a door! (We also built one on our front patio, which was pretty awesome).

Building our snowman at the park (notice the snow bunny we built on the right).

Irby couldn't have loved the snow more!

Posing with his brothers all snug under the wind/rain cover. This is my favorite baby item that we have so far, besides the stroller. Because we live a few blocks from Harris Teeter, I walk to the store and most of my errands. MUCH easier than loading everyone up in the car then unloading, then loading. I just use my stroller as a cart and can walk there and push it all the way home. In this cold weather, I couldn't to it without the cover. Irby even likes to sit under the cover when he gets cold in the 'jump seat' which is the front part where the babies feet will go once they get tall. Amazing that my double Bob is serving us as a triple! Kitty, you have to get this stroller, seriously.

Our front walk.

Our car.

Friends stopping by for hot chocolate and coffee by the fire.

Charlie vs. the Hair - Our First ER Visit

(I just added this picture so you could see what chunks my boys have become! The bottom picture is Charlie's foot the day he and Griffin were born. They have now tripled their birth weight!) Now the reason for this post...

We learned a new term this weekend. It is 'Hair Tourniquet.' Many of you know that about 2 months after you give birth you start to shed a lot of hair (after not losing a single one during pregnancy). Babies lose their hair about that time too. I read it was due to the huge decrease of some hormone (estrogen maybe?). Anyway, after a trip to the ER and the near loss of 2 of Charlie's toes I want to warn you about the hazard that a mother's hair can have to her own child.

So, I was feeding Charlie about 11pm Saturday night, and rubbing his toes. He kind of started to cry, which is strange because eating is like his favorite thing in the world, and I felt something crusty between his toes. So, I tried to look, but it was kind of dark, and he cried when I messed with his toes, so I just waited till he was done eating. Brought him into the light and looked on the back of his toes and see a little scabbing, but bend open his toes and it is really deep, like kind of looks like his toe is cut in half from back to front. I freak out, Irby looks with a flashlight and says, Oh My Goodness, his toe is only half hanging on, and it looks like he has hair wrapped around his toes! So Irby tries to cut the hair with a pocket knife, but it turns out to be much worse and deeper than we thought. It is so deep in there he can't see it, and there is open flesh back in the folds of his toes. From the front, it is not too noticeable and looks like another knuckle (is that even what you call toe joints?) or toe 'bracelet' as we call the baby wrist fat creases. I am freaking out, call the Dr., he says to go ER, so Irby took him, and they were able to get it out. I was sure he was going to lose his toes for not being able to find and cut the hair as it was so tightly wrapped and thus so deeply cutting into his skin. I cannot believe what damage a piece of hair can do. That is just one of the crazier things I've seen lately. Even crazier was the fact that they have a term for it, 'Hair Tourniquet,' so this is not the first time this freak thing has happened. It is looking much better each day and seems to be hurting him less.

PS-Todd, the ER doc is probably rolling his eyes about this one. Crazy, stupid mothers leaving hair around to entangle and possibly dismember their own child's toe. Praise GOD we saw it in time, and we think he will probably make it out of this with all his toes, after a little while of bandaging to make sure it heals completely. Hair, I mean seriously? If hair can be a hazard, ANYTHING can be a hazard. Not good news for this worrier of a Mama. So, I guess Bumble and Bumble 'Thickening" shampoo really works. Not sure if that should be a lawsuit or a commercial.

Christmas

Irby and Charlie with Daddy.

Grandoc and Griffin.

Sunny day in December in DC! We had some amazing weather after our big snow storm.

Irby and Charlie with Daddy by the fire.

Becky and Andrew came to see us! She's holding Griff.

Christmas morning.

What I Meant to Say...

was no KIDS out of bed before 8am. Sure wish that rule could apply to us...maybe in another 10 years? The adults in this family do, however, abide by this rule on the weekends, when the picture below was taken.

PS-Griff slept through the night Mon night and both G and C slept 8pm-4/5am last night, then back to sleep till 8(bc they know the family rules for kids in this house!)