Alex is still being a little chatterbox. Sometimes I wonder when the actual "terrible threes" kick in, because lately it seems he's been more defiant as usual. Plus, more screaming and tantrums. He can definitely be a handful at times! Nap time is on and off. He knows it's quiet time in his room, so he'll actually say, "bye, Mom" if I peek in there. Sometimes he'll fall asleep, but mostly doesn't. This means he is mega crabby by dinner time. Let's just say bedtime can't come any faster some days! Besides that, I LOVE playing with this kid. He is getting into imaginative play and loves to build and construct things. He's really starting to get into the "boy-ish" things like cars, trucks, everything space related, and dinosaurs.
As for me, I've been busy too! When we moved into our house, we unpacked a lot of things, but still had a lot of things stored away. It got kind of ridiculous, so the past 3-4 days, I've been completely organizing. Our walk-in closet is finally walkable and spacious, and both of the boys' closets are finally organized and cleared out. I also organized the walk-in pantry, laundry room, and the rest of the house. It feels SO good to finally have those things done. Now Gary just wants to reorganize the garage and get his tools in better order. He has shelving, but everything needs to be better organized.
Speaking of Gary, he has accepted a new position! Some months ago, Golfsmith filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. To add, they were very hush about what was going to happen to people. Then suddenly they closed over 30 stores and had a lot of people laid off. Gary works at the headquarters, but there was still a lot of uncertainty. Finally it was news that Dick's Sporting Goods bought them. Gary had no choice but to put out his resume to be safe. Then, he was offered a retention bonus if he stayed until June, although they could lay him off anytime before that. We stopped the job search for a bit, but fasted and prayed last Sunday we would know what to do. The following day, he received a few calls, wanting an interview. The week was busy, but on Friday he accepted a new position as a senior developer for Texas Association of Counties. Not only will he be getting his own office, he gets the county pension, which is a pretty amazing deal. The benefits are what really motivated him to accept (besides a higher pay). So, he is excited about this new job! Prayer works!
And for the final update, we finally got some answers about Gabe. Although his weight has gone up and he's been great, we still had an appointment with ECI (Early Childhood Intervention). They did a full evaluation and he scored high on everything but eating. We were told he eats like a 3 month old and works really hard for his milk, using his jaw. Because of this, he qualifies for OT services, which will be happening twice each month. So, my lactation consultant was right when she concluded his latch was just weak, which is why he couldn't draw enough milk from me. It's likely they were due to the ties he had in his mouth. I'm also taking him to get a CST session to help his muscles as well, and getting his tongue re-assessed, just in case it's still tied in some way. Whew, what a journey though. Hopefully with enough therapy, we will get this fixed. A speech therapist may be in the future, but for now, we're just doing the OT.
Well, that's about it for now! Time to get these kids down for a nap!
