Rodeo

On Saturday we went to the rodeo with my dad and cousins. Actually, on Friday night all the adults (including me and Ryan) went to the actual rodeo and concert and then on Saturday we took the kids to the carnival part. I was really looking forward to taking Cannon. We got there right when it opened, so we were the first ones to go into the petting zoo. Cannon got a kick out of all the animals! It was so cute watching him. Then we took him on the pony ride, which he absolutely loved! He was laughing the whole time! Then he got his face painted and he held still while the guy painted a longhorn. I thought by the end of the day he would be scratching it off, but he never touched it. Then we went and did the rides. Cannon was only tall enough to go on the ferris wheel and the little trains. Ryan didn't think he would like the ferris wheel, but he did. It was just Cannon and me that went and he just chilled on my lap. He liked it when the wind blew in his face and he was also clapping. He liked the trains too. He never got a morning nap that day, but he never got fussy or grumpy. He was having way too much fun! It was definitely fun for me and Ryan to watch Cannon have such a great time. The weather was perfect too. Cool in the morning, but it warmed up to about 80 in the afternoon.

p.s. that's my new hair cut and color












My dad really wanted to ride the train with Cannon. I think he was having just as much fun as the kids!

Baby O Baby!

On Tuesday we went down to College Station to stay with Kristina. Beverly and the kids came down too, but they stayed at Aunt Barbara's house (we call her Auntie B now). I was finally able to get a picture of all six grandkids together!



So here's the breakdown of the Rees grandkids: Jeremiah (aka, T), Jade and Ally are Robert and Beverly's kids (Rob is Ryan's brother); Cole and Lyla are Rick and Kristina's kids (Kristina is Ryan's sister); and then Cannon. We say that all the grandkids come in two's and it works out really well that way. And each pair has a connection. For example, Jade and T are a year apart, so they always have each other to play with and both their initials are JT (Jade Taylor and Jeremiah Teancum). Cole and Cannon are six months apart and both their names start with C. Ally and Lyla are three days apart and they both have the same letters in their names. So that's that!

We were having such a fun time in College Station! It was SO much fun having girl time and to be with Kristina, Bev, Aunt Barbara and all our babies. Barbara's great because she has all the kid stuff at her house. Cannon loves being at Kristina's house and he loves playing with Cole. My original plan was to stay from Saturday to Saturday over spring break so Ryan could study for his test. As you know, Cannon got croup last week, so plan B was to stay from Tuesday until Saturday. Well, Cannon got sick again! On Wednesday he started to get low fevers, but on Thursday he was having high fevers, 102 and 103. I called his doctor and she said she wanted to see him to rule out a chest cold or pneumonia. So we left on Thursday afternoon. It wasn't so bad because Bev was leaving at the same time so we caravan-ed.


These two boys have so much fun together! Cole is super anxious for Cannon to walk so that they can share in all the fun times.


Grandma Rees bought them twin outfits for Christmas, but it took us this long to take a picture!

I was finally able to take some pictures of Lyla, but our photo session was short this time. I got a few good ones, but hopefully I'll be able to get some more soon.


This one is my favorite!


She has such big eyes and she is so alert! Her eyes are blue and we think they are going to stay blue! She will be the only Rees grandchild with blue eyes. Everyone else has brown.






Cole is such a good big brother! He loves to give her kisses when she is crying and tries to help her feel better.





On Friday I took Cannon to his pediatrician. He came back negative for flu and ear infections. His chest x-ray and urine sample were clear. She took his blood and it showed that his white blood cell count was elevated, indicating an infection. She gave him a shot of antibiotics and a prescription for oral antibiotics. Today his fever was down to 101 which was a big improvement over yesterday's high temperature of 104! Last night he went to bed at 7pm and slept soundly until 7:30am, then went down for a nap at 9am and slept until 12:30, he then took a second nap from 2:30 until 4:15 and went to bed just after 7pm! He's definitely catching up on his sleep! I can tell that he really doesn't feel well. He is not his normal self. He is so fussy and clingy and he won't play. I even took a warm bath with him (which is usually his most favorite thing), but he cried the whole time. And he has lost his appetite. Usually he eats an incredible amount of food, but since he got croup his appetite has really diminished. Yesterday I got him to eat some scrambled eggs with spinach, but today he only ate half a jar of food. I've been trying to nurse him more and I've even given him formula bottles. He's also a little dehydrated and he's been drinking water like it's going out of style! He's never been sick like this before. I guess I'll stop bragging about how my baby never gets sick!

Part of the issue is that he is getting at least four teeth! One on bottom and one on top have already broke through. The other two on bottom and top are coming through any time now. I also noticed that several teeth are getting close to the edge of the gums, so he may be getting more teeth.






Until today, the weather here has been amazing! We have been trying to spend as much time playing outside as possible. Cannon loves riding his bike that Grandpa Smith got him for Christmas.


This is his latest interest.

My Poor Little Can Man

So this morning we started our day bright and early with a trip to the ER! At about 6:30 this morning I heard Cannon on the monitor screaming and wheezing. I rushed into his room and saw that he was struggling to breathe. I got him and then went to wake up Ryan saying, "Ryan, Cannon is having a hard time breathing!" His response, "Oh, poor little guy." I rephrased my sentence realizing that my previous statement must have lacked a sense of urgency, "RYAN, HE'S NOT BREATHING!!!" Ryan jumped out of bed and immediately decided that it was necessary to take him to the hospital. We were in the hospital by 6:45. He had no fever, no congestion, and no symptoms when I put him to bed that night, except for a little cough. I also realized this morning that his cough was like a barking cough. It sounded terrible and he cried every time he coughed. They first gave him a steroid. Usually they do that through an IV, but luckily they were able to just give it to him orally. Then they gave him a breathing treatment. He liked it at first, but then he kept smacking it down. Then he had a chest x-ray. Then he had another breathing treatment because the first one didn't work. This time he liked it and he held the tube and actually put it in his mouth for the remaining time. It was hilarious because he kept blowing out puffs of vapor. We stayed in the ER for about five hours and then we got to go home. Ryan didn't have time to call in a sub for his class, so I said he could go to work. Before he left he gave Cannon a priesthood blessing and I felt a lot better after that. It worked out because Beverly was taking in Ally for a weight check at the pediatrician's office, so she was nearby. She brought us breakfast and then picked us up when we were discharged. And when we got home, I realized that I was locked out of the house and she was able to break in and unlock the front door. She was a lifesaver in many ways today!

Diagnosis: croup. The steroid is supposed to last up to five days. Since this is viral, antibiotics won't work, so the doctor gave us some things we can do at home to help with the symptoms. And tomorrow morning Cannon will see his pediatrician. So far he is doing much better. He went to bed at 7 and I haven't heard him cough. He's sleeping with his humidifier so that should help.