My New Companion

I don't have a name for her yet, but this chic and I are going to be tight.

I can already tell.

She arrived yesterday and she works hard and the red looks good on her.

Real good.

I love to cook, but I had never heard of this type of blender before.

Enter Owen.

We're now working with specialists at St. Joseph's Hospital in New Jersey.

Owen (and his momma) will be spending five weeks there in August, but in the meantime they're watching him eat via video and giving us recommendations.

They specialize in kids like Owen.

(You know, awesome kids that just happen to have disorders that make eating unpleasant.)

Because of his many allergies, I am now making a lot of his food, and they said I needed an immersion blender. One from vitamix that costs close to $500. 

Yikes!

I did my own research and got this one for $60.

Obviously - I got the red.

(You do know I'm obsessed with red appliances, right?)

We got acquainted yesterday and I love her.

She took bananas, pumpkin, and eggs, and made this:

Perfectly smooth! No lumps!

And with much persuasion and distraction this morning, he ate five bites of it. 

That's right.

5 bites of something with egg in it.

That's a new food and one he's not allergic to!

That's some good protein, yo.

She (name suggestions are welcome for my new companion) also made avacado and chicken with almond milk, and chicken noodle soup with extra chicken and egg in it.

You go, girl.

Now all we need is this Lil' Man to eat like he's never eaten before.

Because dude needs to get out of the third percentile.

Here's to my new companion and hitting the fourth percentile.

I think together, she and I can get it done.

Easter Fun

He is risen.

Which is definitely worth celebrating.

I mean, if we can't celebrate eternal life and hope, what can we celebrate?

So celebrate we did.

We started on Saturday with some Easter Egg dyeing:

(Owen was too busy being tickled in the background to participate.)

Sunday morning the kids woke up to find Easter baskets full of goodies. Emma Grace was so impressed that the bunny knew all of Owen's allergies and didn't put any chocolates in his eggs. I was impressed too. I told her maybe the bunny stopped by UNC on his way and peeked at Owen's files. :)

Apparently when the kids are hyped up on sugary treats, they're more tolerant of my camera lens.

Duly noted.

Last night we busted out the best dishes, made place tags, and celebrated with yummy food and friends.

 

The kids table:

(Poor Molly and Abby. They had to sit at the kids table. They were good sports about it though. I so remember that transition of being too old for the kids table but getting stuck there anyways.)

Happy Easter, Blogging World!

And don't worry - I won't leave you without a true shot of the Fischer Kids:

Friday Fun

After our appointment at UNC on Friday,

Owen and I met up with my oldest childhood friend for a few hours.

She was in town for a wedding and I got to hold her sweet baby boy for the first time.

I even got to change his blowout diaper and watch Owen love on him.

(And throw a car at him when I was holding him, but we don't need to talk about that....)

We miss you Auntie Whitney.

Come back soon!

Spring Break

Spring Break 2011 hasn't gone down exactly as planned,

but we managed to have a good time, regardless.

It started off last Friday with a fun trip to the beach to visit Todd's parents and grandmother.

The kids did some bonding and some fishing and some camping in the bathroom during tornado warnings, in no particular order.

There are no pictures of me, but if you want to know what I looked like, just imagine the most comfy recliner in the world with me parked there reading my kindle. For three days.

Or....as I like to call it.....a little taste of Heaven.

We also got to visit with Todd's grandmother. She is a precious woman and I love these pics.

After lunch with Nana, we loaded up the car and made faces on the way back home.

Some of us put more effort into than others.....

We got home Monday evening.

The rest of the week had some unexpected unpleasantness but all is well now.

The kids both have a loose tooth right now.

I'm pretty sure Isaac's is loose because he worked so hard to get it that way.

The boy seriously wants a visit from the tooth fairy.

He thinks the dollar will buy him a huge Star Wars legos set.

I don't have the heart to tell him otherwise.

(But I think he'll be happy on his birthday.)

And that's Spring Breakin' It, Fischer Style.

Stay tuned for more pics of the rest of our week and hopefully a great Easter Egg Hunt tomorrow.

The Post In Which I Brag Shamelessly

I know I don't always go into a lot of details on my blog about Owen's struggles, 

but today I'm in the mood to brag.

So I'm gonna.

Because this guy amazes me every day.

He battles a chronic disorder that is painful and still smiles like this:

He's been in speech therapy for months and when he started he was not communicating at all, and Tuesday he tested in the 19th% for his age.

I think that's brag worthy.

(It also means we're almost done with speech therapy.) Yay.

He loves to be outside and he loves his dog.

Put the two together? He's set. She's the first thing he looks for every morning.

(I read an article in a health magazine that said kids with special health needs find a lot of comfort in pets.) We're living proof that that is in fact, true.

He faces obstacles every single day with a determination that baffles and inspires me.

And that's why I'm here bragging.

Because last night, my little man who doesn't want to eat because of pain,

ate a bite of hot dog.

Just one bite. The rest got spit out, but believe me,

that is progress worth bragging about!

There's a lot of unknowns in his disorder.

There's a lot of scary.

But there's also a lot of joy when he has good days and you see what God can teach you through one very determined two year old.

You go, Owen -

With your hot dog eating and speech learning self!

Tonight's menu?

Ribeye. :)

They're Baaacccckkkkkk

Spring is here.

It was 87 degrees today....which means the 

knobbiest knees and skinniest legs known to man are back on display.

I love them! (and her.)

Those legs make me smile.

Bedtime Fun

Look who wanted to try underwear tonight....

(Over a diaper of course. I wasn't born yesterday.)

"Hey Owen - where is your belly?"

"Hey Owen - where's your tushy?"

"Hey Owen - what's your sister up to?"

(I'm still such a sucker for that little gap toothed smile.)

"Hey Owen - what's so funny?"

It's not a bird.

It's not a plane.

It's Spiderman.

"Spiderman is ashy." (Isaac's words - not mine).

So true though.

Since everybody is in such a good mood,

let's go for it.

Group Photo anyone?

See. That wasn't so bad.

Uh Oh.

Wait for it.............

Wait for it.............

Here it comes.......

(Or as Isaac likes to say:"he's about to lose it!")

Sigh.

Yup. Definitely time for bed.

Good Night.

Healthy Competition

He may be upset that she was the first to lose a tooth around here,

but she's seriously annoyed that he's a faster runner than her.

 

Yup.

Nothing like a little healthy competition on a sunny afternoon at the park.

And believe me, Dude can run.

And Lil' Man can swing and climb with the best of them.

But apparently none of them know how to take a group photo.

I give up.