Easter

We hosted Easter for Julie's family this year. It was great to see everyone and I think that they really enjoyed Aiden now that he is getting old enough to play with. Paula treated us to a great Easter dinner (Virginia ham of course) and Steve and I enjoyed the NCAA basketball tournament. We also got a nice surprise from Illinois as my mom was released from the hospital. I have included a video of Andrew coaxing Aiden toward his first Easter basket. I will try to add some photos later.

Get Well Soon Grandma

This is one of my favorite pics of Aiden. I love the big gummy grin. If you look real close you can see his first tooth poking through on the bottom left (his right). I added a few pics from a recent birthday party we attended. To see the rest of the gallery click here.

update

I'm sorry this is another post without pictures. Brent is the one who does the fancy stuff and it's been hard for him to make a blog post working 16-17 hour days. We do have some really cute pictures of Aiden from a week or two ago that we'll try to post sometime over the Easter weekend. Brent is not on call and my parents are coming up tomorrow night, and Andrew & Tracie will be joining us on Easter Day. It will be a much needed mental break around here.

Firstly--Kathi is doing better; although still in the hospital and still on morphine (plus I gather about 20 other meds), they have ruled out the need to do neurosurgery--a HUGE relief for all of us. 10 days and counting in the hospital, plus the forecast of a work-free, drive free, basically fun-free existence for the next 4-6 weeks is a big drag, but we're all looking forward to the day when boredom is her chief complaint.

Secondly--we have found a new nanny for Aiden and Kennedy. Anne-Marie, who left Trinidad for a vacation visiting family in Manhattan 6 years ago and never returned because her flight back was canceled in the days following 9/11 (and then she found a family who needed her...) comes very highly recommended by her previous employers. She has a lovely accent and already a fondness for her "first boy" (the two previous families were full of girls).

next time, there will be pictures. I just wanted to give you all the update.

Prayers Needed

Last night on my way home from work I got a call with the news that Brent's mom was being admitted to the ICU because of brain bleeding. We still don't have all the answers but we do know that she is still conscious but in a lot of pain, and they are continuing tests this morning to see if surgery (to release the intra-cranial pressure caused by the bleeding) is necessary. I don't have to tell you all how serious this situation and possible neurosurgery is. Please keep us in your thoughts.

Also yesterday (right after I walked in the door, after hearing about Kathi), our nanny told us she is quitting. Because of all the turmoil in Kenya, she has to go back to take care of her family and some family business. This is also deeply upsetting since Aiden loves Doris and at 7 1/2 mos. is just nearing that age where he'll begin to show stranger anxiety. Hopefully we'll be able to find someone good to replace her.

DADA!!!!!!

Aiden has been babbling Dada a lot today. I have to put a disclaimer on these claims as he seems to be calling me Dada, Julie Dada, the cat Dada, and the chair Dada. I was able to capture a little on video (posted below), so you can judge for your self. He also has been babbling Mama a little too. Usually when Julie is out of the room. Anyway, it seems like the little guy is growing up so fast. He is sitting up independently now also. I have posted a few recent pics as well. I am starting a rotation, surgical pathology, that is supposed to have a lot of long hours so the blog posts may slow down a little for the next few weeks.