Southern Arizona Steeler Family

Can I See Myself?

2010-09-06T12:19:00.001-07:00

This child isn't concerned about appearances...you have to wait until the very end of the clip to hear it...

Where Everyone Lives

2010-07-18T21:19:00.002-07:00

Need to Start a Journal

2010-06-08T15:00:00.002-07:00

Now that Evan can almost hold a complete conversation, we need to start keeping a journal on the "Evan-isms". Aside from some of things he says simply being funny...he says some things that are those "head-turn" moments. Those, "Wha?" moments for us.

The other Friday I was driving to the soccer field for my game and I had Evan with me (T was on an overnight motorcycle ride). I took the back way to Fry Boulevard, which takes us past his pediatrician's office. In the past, Evan usually recognizes the building (he loves the automatic opening doors) and says something along the lines of that being where the doctor lives. This time, he says..."I like Dr. Smith, he's really smart!". That was a head-turn "Wha"?! It was a shock to hear him actually say Dr. Smith's name. We'll see how much he likes Dr. Smith when we see him in July for his 4-year-old shots! ;-)

Schools Out!

2010-05-31T14:55:00.000-07:00

Evan is bummed now that the regular school year is over! He really enjoyed the school year in the special preschool class. Since he has had incredible improvement in his speech over the year, he will no longer qualify for speech therapy at preschool. The great news is, he will be able to return as the "Typical Peer Mentor" in the class. The majority of his classmates in the special preschool class are there for speech development, so he will be the "model student" for his classmates. He will still only go for half a day and then ride the bus back to daycare again (his favorite part of the day).

Evan Class Pics

2010-04-15T21:42:00.002-07:00

Decorating Cookies!

2010-04-03T20:46:00.003-07:00

Here are some vids of Evan decorating Easter cookies (for the Easter Bunny of course).

Evan at the Little Gym

2010-03-06T17:33:00.000-07:00

Some vids of Evan at the Little Gym in Tucson. He loves going here and running all over the place.

video-2010-01-07-12-03-46.3gp

2010-02-27T21:22:00.000-07:00

This was a video from back in January when we were visiting family in Florida. This was a small beach near T's parents' house in Crystal River, FL.

Been Bad...I Know!!

2010-02-21T22:36:00.002-07:00

All of Evan's latest videos are posted to YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/user/jdorris88

I promise to try to get caught up one of these days!!

Lots of Good Things to Announce!

2009-10-03T19:13:00.003-07:00

Lots of great news to announce! Evan has been doing so well in his special preschool class. Every day he chats about "I ride the bus"! We can't get him to say much more about what he did during the day but his teacher sends notes home in his journal so we know a little. He has become a much chattier kid which is fun. There are still many time when we can't clearly understand what he is saying and have to ask him to repeat himself. He must think we are really dumb!

Another great accomplishment (although it's not too exciting to talk about in public) is that he is pretty much completely potty-trained! He's been diaper free for almost 2 weeks. He is even staying dry during the night. He has to stay accident-free for 2 weeks in his daycare class for him to bump up to the 3-year-old room. He is 1-week into it, so fingers crossed he does well this week. He has spent some afternoon time over with the 3's, so it should be a smooth transition for him.

The third item of news is that I found out from our Tucson March of Dimes Chapter that Evan is the top youth walker for 2009 in the southern Arizona region AND number 241 nationwide! A huge thanks to everyone who continues to support Evan in the various March of Dimes events such as the Jail and Bail and Walk for Babies.

For the past few Saturdays, Evan has been participating in a introductory sports program for 3-5 year olds with the city. For 2 weeks they did baseball and the past 2 weeks were basketball. Next week is soccer (yeah). We have some video of him that we'll post, so stay tuned. Most of the time we chased him around since he wasn't interested in doing what the other kids were doing.

Here is his class picture from Carmichael Elementary Special Preschool:

Riding the Big Bus

2009-08-21T19:37:00.003-07:00

Evan has a full week under his belt at his special preschool program. 4 days a week he is picked up by a bus to take him to Carmichael Elementary (yes, little Evan is riding the big bus)! He spends 2.5 hours at the school working with a preschool teacher and a speech therapist to get him caught up on his language skills. His class only has 4 other students, so he's getting a lot of one-on-one attention. All the notes we get back from his teachers are positive, so of course he's a teacher's favorite!

3-year Old Pics

2009-08-02T19:04:00.012-07:00

We had Evan's 3-year old pics taken today. Ya never know what you're gonna get with him in front of the camera. In celebration of the Steelers winning the Super Bowl, we had pics taken with him in his Ben jersey.

17 Quarts!

2009-07-18T20:34:00.004-07:00

For those of you parents who ever wanted to know the "volume" of their child...here is the perfect way to figure it out...

Evan should be helping his Mom organize his room, but instead is enjoying sitting in the 17 quart container.

Hip Hip Hooray!

2009-07-17T15:19:00.000-07:00

Evan is still a big Winnie the Pooh fan (both the old school Winnie and the newer "My Friends Tigger and Pooh". Nanny and Bop sent Evan a musical birthday card with an "old school Winnie" song. It took Evan a little bit, but he almost can sing the whole song. This is a pretty big feat for a kid who wasn't talking much until recently.

Check up with Dr. Smith

2009-07-16T20:39:00.001-07:00

Evan had his 3-year-old checkup with our local pediatrician, Dr. Smith today. It has been a while since we've had Evan weighed, so we guesstimated ahead of time that he would weigh about 23 pounds (he's been feeling heavier lately). We were close, he weighed 22 lbs. 2 oz. but he was 33 inches (so he is getting taller). He's still way off the charts, but a pretty perfectly sized 18-month old.

He was an absolute angel at his appointment...he even went to Dr. Smith and sat on his lap willingly. Evan got a clear bill of health. We don't have to come back to see Dr. Smith until he's 4 (unfortunately there will be shots at his 4 year old check-up).

3rd Birthday!

2009-07-14T20:38:00.008-07:00

Hard to believe that Evan turned 3 today! We brought in snacks for his daycare class to celebrate with his friends instead of doing a big party.

Evan sporting his "3 Year Olds Rock" t-shirt that I made for him:

Evan's birthday party at school (it was a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Theme):

His "Go Diego Go!" themed birthday cake:

He needed some help from Dad to blow out the candles:

Birthday Part 2

2009-07-14T15:26:00.006-07:00

Videos from his birthday:

T-Ball and Piping

2009-07-03T20:06:00.003-07:00

Aside from wishing Evan to be a happy and healthy child; he has parents who have knacks for different talents: music and sports. These two videos show that Evan has potential in those two areas.

If you have your speakers on, check your volume before playing this one. This is Evan playing a bagpipe chanter. A bagpipe chanter is what beginning pipers use to work just on the bagpipe fingerings. After a person masters that, then you progress to actually blowing into the bagpipe (which is a whole other skill to master). I haven't been keeping up with my bagpipe practice (sorry Marc)...maybe Evan can pick up where I left off. It is funny seeing Evan in the video act like he is fingering the holes on the chanter (although the chanter is way huge for him).

In this video you can see Evan's first try at t-ball. From the video, it appears Evan really favors his left hand. We kept trying to get him to switch sides and swing like a rightie; but he kept going back to his left.

Getting Ready for a New School

2009-06-21T17:42:00.006-07:00

On Thursday, we had a meeting with all of Evan's early intervention specialists and new teachers in anticipation of him "aging out" into the Headstart program. In August, he will go to Carmichael Elementary 2.5 hours 4 days a week to get speech therapy. We weren't able to meet his teacher Dana since she had a family emergency, but we were able to meet one of the school psychologists and his new speech therapist. The timing turned out good that he turns 3 in July and the new school year starts at the beginning of August.

Funny to think that he will be riding a bus from daycare to Carmichael (of course there is an aide on the bus with him to make sure he gets to where he needs to go). There are other kids from his daycare who will be going to Carmichael also, so he won't be alone. It was a bummer that Village Meadows didn't offer the Headstart programs since that is right behind our house. We're not sure if he will attend the morning or afternoon session; but since he is a good early afternoon napper, chances are he will attend the morning session. The big drawback to that is that he will miss breakfast at school.

If We Were Sticks...

2009-06-21T17:00:00.001-07:00

I found the link to this site on another friend's blog page...I couldn't customize the dogs though...

Make your Stick Figure Family at FreeFlashToys.com

News : Community band strikes up fun in Sierra Vista : Sierra Vista, AZ

2009-06-11T10:49:00.001-07:00

News : Community band strikes up fun in Sierra Vista : Sierra Vista, AZ

Shared via AddThis

Knockers!

2009-06-06T21:39:00.003-07:00

Every day Evan's communication skills improve; but we still find ourselves asking Evan to repeat himself. The other morning Evan came up to me and said he wanted what sounded like "knockers". I asked him to repeat it and he repeated as clear as day. Of course I had no idea what he was saying and I asked him to show me what he was wanting. He pulled me over to a bag of toys we had taken on the trip to the Albuquerque soccer tournament. As he was digging through this bag I had no idea what he was going to pull out that resembled the word "knockers" until he pulled out his plastic binoculars. Aaahhh...."knockers" are "binoculars"...anyone would know that, right?

This Will Make Me Taller!

2009-05-24T18:47:00.002-07:00

Evan had fun today playing at Patagonia Lake. We hope gravity will do it's job!

See, I Draw!

2009-05-11T20:42:00.004-07:00

I was able to catch Evan saying a few phrases: "See, I draw" and "I drop". He was mimicking what he saw on an epsiode of "Shaun the Sheep"...which is his latest favorite show to watch. On one of the episodes, the sheep paint funny abstract forms on a canvas. Evan's not to far off from that!

He went on to draw his versions of mom and dad, which were nothing more than scribbled lines (if we were only that skinny in real life)! Note in the video that he's standing on his tall step stool to get a better height. I think there is a glimpse of him putting his hands on his hips; which is a new thing he is doing that is funny to see.

Today was Evan's hooky day from school. He had a fever for most of the day yesterday. This morning he was still a little bit warm, so we split the shift today at home with him. He was still in his comfy pjs sporting his latest fun thing to do...stick out his tongue.

Evan the Treat-Meister

2009-04-26T18:19:00.002-07:00

Evan loves giving his best buddies treats.

Class Picture Flashback

2009-04-24T18:23:00.003-07:00

Evan's class pictures from the previous 2 years:

Class Pictures!

2009-04-24T18:19:00.003-07:00

Evan's class pictures turned out great!

Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-21T20:37:00.002-07:00

Fore or He Shoots, He Scores?

2009-04-19T18:13:00.001-07:00

Evan is getting the hang of using his plastic golf clubs. He is also showing hockey tendencies...sortta "Happy Gilmore" style.

March for Babies 2009

2009-03-31T20:34:00.004-07:00

It was a very busy weekend! On Saturday, the Sierra Vista March for Babies took place. It was an early day for me since I had to be at the park by 0530 to help set-up. We had a great turnout this year. Our family team, Warrior 06 raised over $1000, which was more than last year. A big thank you to everyone who donated.

Thunder Mountain 5K

2009-03-21T14:15:00.007-07:00

Today was the annual Thunder Mountain 5K/10K on post. Evan and I participated alongside two of my co-workers, Terri and JoNell. Terri is my buddy that walks the Bisbee steps with us. Terri ran the 5K, but I walked with JoNell. This was the first time doing a run since the Tucson Half Marathon back in December.

Evan thrilled as usual to be up early:

I hadn't had Evan in the jog stroller for a while, so I was worried he would get antsy out on the course. I had his favorite movie du jour (Cars) on the Ipod and he was engrossed the entire time. After the race, they held the Diaper Dash again for kids 3 and under. Evan was so antsy to run, he ran all by himself as a warm up; but when the whistle blew for the real start, he froze (must be performance anxiety).

This was the warm-up run (he looks like a real sprinter)!:

This was the real race (I think that girl looks older than 3)!

Afterwards, we went to the Landmark for breakfast. I was worried since we never go out to eat with Evan (he's in a nightmare stage). Luckily, the movie kept him occupied until the food came, and he actually ate! I ordered him a plate of 2 scrambled eggs and white toast. He ate almost the whole plate of eggs (which I had to cover in ketchup) with an adult fork. He nibbled on a bit of the toast too. So he truly is a social eater.

Future Tiger?

2009-03-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

We got some footage of Evan swinging a club in the backyard. No Tiger Woods yet, but he's working on it.

Sierra Vista March For Babies

2009-03-15T22:57:00.004-07:00

The Sierra Vista March for babies is in less than two weeks. Here is the link to his video for this year's walk:

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Reid Park Zoo

2009-03-08T13:23:00.001-07:00

We took Evan to Reid Park Zoo in Tucson. The weather was perfect, not too hot or cold and a little overcast. Evan wasn't super-interested in the animals, so we aren't predicting he'll be a zoologist.

MoD Family Day

2009-02-22T11:44:00.003-07:00

The Tucson March of Dimes held a family day at the Tucson Children's Museum. It was the first time we had been to the museum. It was super-crowded since it was a free day for the community and there was a Carnivale across the street at Armory Park.

Pump It Up

2009-02-16T17:49:00.006-07:00

Since today was a day off (for one of us); I took Evan to a place up in Tucson called Pump It Up which is an indoor playplace with inflatables. We took my good friend Sunny and her daughter Anya with us. There were 2 big rooms full of inflatable slides and obstacle courses. Evan stuck to the biggest slide (most of the time asking us to carry him to the top).

After playing at Pump It Up, we took a side trip to Himmel Park down near campus to play outside. For those of you who are familiar with Himmel Park in Tucson, there is a huge slide there (very tall, very fast)...called the "Giganto Slide of Death". Right before we left the park, Evan decided to climb up the slide all by himself (I was behind him making sure he didn't fall). At the top, we had to come down of course. He went down the slide all by himself (with Sunny catching him at the bottom). I had to come down too...let me just say...when you have a lot of mass, you come down that slide mighty fast.

We finished off the day with lunch at Chuck E Cheese. Evan had a blast watching the animatronic characters. He even got to see Chuck E in person (without freaking out).

Evan had so much fun riding down with Anya.

Poor Anya was such a trooper, she suffered some serious brush burn on the slide bringing Evan down one of the times.

This was some other mom that helped bring Evan down the slide. He decided to climb the whole way up the slide by himself, but got scared to come down.

Note Evan's hair as he rides with Sunny. That slide was fast!

We were so proud to see him eat an entire piece of sausage pizza!

March of Dimes Video

2009-02-10T21:27:00.003-07:00

A great video explaining what the March of Dimes is all about. Evan is getting closer to his goal of $500 for this year's March for Babies. Team Warrior 06 will be walking again this year (we're considered a "veteran team" now).

Snowy Morning

2009-02-10T21:13:00.002-07:00

We had one of those rare weather occurances this morning...snow! As you can see, it was not a lot; but enough to have us on a "late start" day at work.

Representing His Home Team!

2009-01-31T13:59:00.000-07:00

To show he's not afraid to "represent" in Arizona....Evan had a different Steeler shirt to wear every day of the week. I forgot to take a picture Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, but here are the pics from Thursday and Friday.

Thursday's Shirt

Friday's Shirt

Dentist Check-Up

2009-01-21T20:15:00.004-07:00

Evan had his 6-month check-up with the dentist today. He got the all-good from the dentist despite screaming his head off during the exam. All his expected teeth have come in and we're waiting on the back set of molars.

Seeing a New Doc at UMC

2009-01-20T20:44:00.000-07:00

Evan's primary care doctor wanted us to see a pediatric endocrinologist (which means another trip to Tucson since we don't have that type of doctor in Sierra Vista). His doctor's appointment was at his old stomping grounds...University Medical Center. We saw both a pediatric resident and Dr. Wheeler. Luckily, no shots or other crazy tests. We have to get an x-ray done of Evan's hand. An odd thing, but that will help to determine his bone age (to see if he's having a growth problem). When we see the doctor again in three months, he'll take more precise measurements and start tracking Evan's growth more closely. At least Evan is getting taller (but he's still way small for his age).

---------------------------------
Weight: 21.8 lbs.
Height: 32 in.

Choo-choo!

2009-01-20T20:12:00.001-07:00

Evan is getting the hang of riding his train. To get traction, he has to sit back a bit on the seat.

EEG Results

2009-01-06T21:16:00.002-07:00

Forgot to give a follow-up on the results of Evan's recent medical tests. We've only heard results back on the EEG, and they came back normal (which we figured). We're still waiting on thre MRI results.

On a different note...we're proud to announce Evan used his potty chair for the first time tonight. Since lately he's fond of running around the house semi-naked or fully naked, it's easy for him to sit on the potty. We moved the chair by the t.v. where he was watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (gasp...something other than Pooh)...and I told him to make sure he sits on the potty if he had to pee. He jumped up on the potty and did his business (twice)! So proud!!

Christmas Dinner

2008-12-25T22:47:00.004-07:00

We had Christmas dinner at Mike and Cindy's house...Evan had a great time climbing in and out of their little dog door.

Getting a beer for Dad:

Hanging out with Dad:

Christmas!

2008-12-25T11:45:00.003-07:00

Waking up:

Opening his shopping cart:

Filling up his cart:

Playing with the truck with Dad:

Using the cart:

Opening his Pooh table:

Opening up his Leapster:

Helping to get Max and Sadie's stockings:

After getting a ball from his stocking, Max went outside and didn't want to come back in. It was raining, but Max didn't care:

Opening up his artboard/easel:

Opening his train:

Eating breakfast and playing with his Leapster:

Giving ther pups their morning treats:

Ready for Christmas!

2008-12-24T22:56:00.001-07:00

Everything is ready!

Ready for Christmas day!

EEG Day

2008-12-22T16:14:00.003-07:00

This morning was Evan's EEG at Tucson Medical Center at 8am. According to the pre-op directions, we were supposed to keep Evan up until midnight and then get him up at 4am. The point was to make him sleep-deprived so the sedative would work better. Evan ended up faling asleep around 9:30pm Sunday night and there was no keeping him awake. We got him up at 4am, but he was still zonked out. He was awake by the time we headed to Tucson, so we figured that was good enough.

They used an oral sedative on him that tasted awful according to the nurse. Evan was not happy having the liquid force-fed to him (of course). It took about 15-20 minutes for the sedative to work. Evan became slightly combative as he started to go out (which is normal according to the nurse). After he was out, the EEG guy went to work on him, measuring his head for the placement of the electrodes. There were about 20 electrodes to fit on his small head. After marking the locations with a black sharpie (of all things), he used an abrasive lotion on the spots and then stuck the electrodes on. Evan stirred a little bit when he was putting the electrodes on, but stayed sleeping.

After doing all the long prep work, the test only ran about 20 minutes. Towards the end, they used a flashing light (sort of like a strobe light) which helped to wake him up and it tests something different with his brain...the technical term is "photic or stroboscopic stimulation". Luckily, the electrodes came off rather easy and we were out the door by about 10:30am.

We should get the results within a week (with the holiday and all).

Going to see "Tanta"!

2008-12-19T18:27:00.001-07:00

Evan has a little understanding of Santa Claus (because he's on one of the episodes of "My Friends Tigger and Pooh"). Since Evan has yet to master his "ess's", Santa is "Tanta". We asked him if he wanted to go see Santa and he was very excited. We headed off to the mall in search of "Tanta"!

As expected, being a typical 2-year old...Evan talked a good game about Santa...but when it came time to sit on the big guy's lap, he was less than willing. Mom had to end up sitting with Santa and put Evan on her lap. As you can see, he was still not happy! Funny, it was the same Santa as last year!

MRI

2008-12-17T18:15:00.000-07:00

This morning was Evan's MRI up at Tucson Medical Center. We're trying to figure out why Evan has been having passing-out epsiodes at daycare. We had to be there by 7am (ick) which meant leaving the house by 5:30am (ack). We pretty much grabbed Evan from bed and just put him in the car and he slept most of the trip. Even after we got to the hospital we left him in his pjs since we figured they'd put him in a hospital gown.

Evan was antsy since he had been to TMC before (for his reflux scope). After checking in we had to wait a good 45 until the anthesiologist came to get him, so we occupied him by looking through picture books. The procedure took about 40 minutes, he was knocked out for the whole thing. He did well coming out of the anesthesia, so we were out the door and back on the road for home around 9:30am.

We should hear results sometime next week, but no news is good news.

Amphibious Pooh

2008-12-15T21:22:00.000-07:00

Two-year olds go through phases (a shock, I know)! Evan loved getting a bath until recently. I found a "Bath Time Pooh" at Target that has renenergized Evan's love of bath time. This Pooh is really cute (he has a red life jacket on) and comes with a little Piglet who sits in a boat.

Twinkle, Twinkle!

2008-12-13T19:17:00.000-07:00

This video has a bit of wasted footage, but it's Evan's first attempt on video to sing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star".

Cheeeeese!

2008-12-08T21:23:00.004-07:00

It was a rare occasion...Evan let us take his picture. He even said "cheeeeese"! I was able to trim his hair up a bit also...he was rockin' the crazy hair look (all the rave with 2-year olds).

Tucson Half Marathon

2008-12-07T19:03:00.003-07:00

I survived my second half marathon this morning. I didn't post as good of a score I had hoped for since my left knee started hurting. It was odd since I never have trouble with my knees. It was probably due to not running much the past month and playing soccer the past 2 days.

They'll eventually post pictures to www.marathonfoto.com. My bib number was 3432.

Here are my stats from the run:

Overall: 1207 out of 1460
Women: 690 out of 889
F 35-39: 108 out of 130
Age/Grade: 40.86% Place: 1239
Finish: 2:45:40 Pace: 12:39
Tag Time: 2:45:40
Gun Time: 2:47:51
6.1 Mile:1:14:17 Pace: 11:58

At least the Steelers beat the Cowboys today; which made my run all the better!

Back From the 'Burgh

2008-12-02T16:34:00.007-07:00

It's been hectic since returning from my quick trip to the 'Burgh Thanksgiving weekend. I had a blast at my 20-year reunion, despite the relatively small turnout from my class. We had a combined reunion with the class of 1987 and I knew a lot of the '87 grads, so it made it worth it.

I won't go into detail on the travel issues I had getting home...let's just say I was supposed to get into Tucson Sunday night around 9:45pm; I didn't make it home to Sierra Vista until Monday around 11:30am. The trouble wasn't weather related, but a computer glitch on the plane we were to take out to Pittsburgh to Phoenix. The highlight was that I was able to watch the Steelers kick butt against New England during the delay. Oh, the other highlight is that the Scottdale Pizzeria is back open and I was lucky to get a pizza (they only make a certain number every night).

Southmoreland Class of 1988

Virginia, Lori, Mindy and I tried to recreate the picture below from the '87 prom...

Two Words in Row!

2008-11-26T18:01:00.003-07:00

Big day today...Evan said 2 words in a row! He said "bye bye truck" (o.k. that's really 3 words, but two unique words in a row)! All heavy equipment is a "truck" to him, so they were actually bulldozers working on the parking lot beside where I work. Evan was having a bad day at daycare, so I had to pick him up bring him to work. He loves sneaking through the turnstile (he's skinny enough to squeeze through the side) and walking up and down the stairs.

Got a call from Dr. Smith's nurse today with Evan's lab work and x-ray results. Nothing bad to report on the x-ray; nothing really bad to report on his bloodwork; but Dr. Smith still wants Evan to see a pediatric endocrinologist. I asked the nurse if Evan's TSH's levels were off (which would mean a thyroid problem like Mom); but she said the results were within the normal range. So, we'll try to find a local doctor (but chances are we'll have to go to Tucson for that too).

Artwork Update

2008-11-26T17:56:00.010-07:00

Bye Bye to the Crud

2008-11-24T21:29:00.004-07:00

Evan has almost fully recovered from the crud...just a little lingering cough. He was almost back to himself today. On Friday, I took him to get his chest x-ray (always fun)! Of course he was not cooperative; so it took me and 2 other x-ray techs to hold him in place. They had to take 2 sets of films since he moved. No word from the doctor on the results of his x-ray, so we assume all is well. We still have to get the EKG done here locally, probably tomorrow.

Back to the Doc!

2008-11-19T21:59:00.004-07:00

Evan had a doctor's appointment today (and ironically he has the crud also)...but his appointment wasn't for the crud, but to check on a problem he's been having at daycare. About 4-5 times over the past month, he's been having these passing out episodes where he stops breathing and turns blue. It takes his teachers about 15-20 seconds to get him back to normal by blowing in his face or splashing him with water. These episodes are usually brought on by extreme crying (usually someone stepped on his hand or knocked him over). We've never seen this happen at home, so it's really odd.

Dr. Smith was concerned about these episodes and wants to pursue all the options to make sure it's not something serious. He said it sounded like a case of breath-holding syndrome, which is what is sounds like. He is having Evan do a bunch of tests to rule out "Syncope" which is a more serious issue. We have to get blood draw to check to make sure metabolically everything is fine; a 12-line EKG; chest x-ray and MRI and EEG (at Tucson Medical Center). We're wating to hear from TMC when the EEG and MRI will be. Thank goodness he'll be sedated for those tests.

After the doctor's visit we went to the hospital to have Evan's blood drawn and EKG. The poor boy hadn't napped or ate anything all day, so he was miserable. We tried to get the EKG done first, the lady was able to get the stickers on his chest without too much fuss, but when she put the leads on, Evan lost his mind. We decided to wait until after he got blood drawn to do the EKG. Of course, the blood draw was terrible since Evan was so dehydrated. The poor lab tech had to use the top of Evan's hand to get a good vein. It took 2 lab techs and me holding him in the chair. After the blood draw, we tried the EKG one more time and of course, he was a no-go at that station again. We'll try again in a day or so.

On top of Evan feeling terrible today due to the onset of a bad cold, he got a flu shot. Dr. Smith was also concerned with Evan's chest congestion, so he prescribed Pulmicort 2 times a day in his nebulizer for the next 2 weeks. That should help open up his chest a bit more.

Weight check: 21 pounds 3 ounces (will the boy ever get heavier)??
Length: 31 inches.

Here Comes the Cold!

2008-11-09T22:07:00.002-07:00

We finally had to break down and turn the heat on Friday night! Tonight they are calling for snow above 7000 feet, but we won't see much of anything but light rain. We had crazy wind today that blew in even more of the colder weather.

Evan ran the Veteran's Day 5k with me on Saturday. We didn't go for any world records (hard to do when you have a 2-year old asking for his mini Oreos during the run...sortta throws off your running pace).

Evan loves playing with the trash cans...what is with that??!!

Bike Show

2008-11-01T21:25:00.001-07:00

We travelled up to Glendale for the Cycle World Motorcycle Show in the University of Phoenix Stadium (where the Cardinals play). It was a long trip, but Dad got to sit on some bikes and get some gear. Evan had a great time with Mom chasing him all over the expo. He endeared himself to the guys in the Kawasaki trailer outside and got to go into the trailer and they gave him a pin and a frisbee. The highlight of the trip was the stop by In-N-Out Burger in Chandler (of course)!

Typical Evan being antsy:

No Dad, get the ZX-14 instead!

Get me off this Councours!

Halloween!

2008-10-31T21:09:00.003-07:00

It was a busy day today! Evan's daycare had a Halloween party today, so they encouraged the kids to dress up. I didn't want to risk Evan messing up his evening costume (see below), so we went simple and dressed him in his Steelers jersey. The father of one of the other kids in his class is also a big Steelers fan (he ironically went to St. Vincent College and Thiel College). For those of you in the 'Burgh area, you know those schools. His daughter didn't want to wear the Steeler cheerleader uniform they dressed her in. I thought it would have been so cute to have her and Evan both in Steeler garb.

Every morning, Evan looks for the garbage truck:

Evan Halloween Costume #1: Big Ben!

Evan Halloween Costume #2: Jinbei Outfit from Japan

Sierra Vista United Methodist Chruch had a big fall festival. Evan didn't quite know what to do. Out in the parking lot they had a "trunk or treat" for the kids (so you don't have to go door-to-door).

Evan found a fun game to play:

Using the Dog Door

2008-10-30T19:25:00.003-07:00

We recently installed a new dog door that will allow Max to get in and out of the house easier. This door is a little taller than the old one, and doesn't have a rise like the old one did. As you can see fro the videos, Evan has taken a liking to using the dog door as his means of going outside.

Bisbee Stairclimb 2008!

2008-10-18T21:47:00.001-07:00

The third Saturday of each October is a special day...it's Bisbee Stairclimb Day! I had mentioned in earlier posts about training for the event. My co-worker Terri and I did a handful of practice runs to get prepared. Despite all the practice runs, it never gets any easier, you just recover faster.

Evan was a bit antsy in the beginning since it wasn't our normal routine to just hang around waiting. All along the way I had comments from people about how in the world I could do the steps with Evan on my back. It wasn't too hard when you train for it. :-) We think our time was about 1 hour and 30 minutes...which is pretty good considering our practice runs were about 1 hour 45 minutes. We decided to run the first downhill leg through Tombstone Canyon (until Terri reinjured her hamstring). After that, we just stuck with walking. Evan thought it was so funny bouncing up and down in the backpack as we were running. The people around us were laughing at his laughter.

Evan being antsy...saying..."Why aren't we walking already??!!"

Shocking! A picture of the boy sitting still!

This is my co-worker Terri (these pics are from her cell phone).

A view of the mass of humanity before the start

We were in the corral waiting to go...Evan was pointing out people he thought we could easily beat.

Stair #1 Super-easy!

Stair #2 Another easy one!

Stair #3 It's starting to get hard!

Stair #4 Aaargh...hating this!

Stair #5 The dreaded Maxwell Stairs! Made it to the top of High Street. How fitting of a name for a street in Bisbee! Evan was so worn out even he needed a drink of water.

Stair #6 The worst is over, but alas, more steps to climb!

Stair #7 Nice easy set of steps...I think Evan was sleeping by this time.

Stair #8 One more left after this set...

During our training sessions, Terri and I said we would get a picture of this street sign. Funny with the Obama sign behind us (sooooo Bisbee).

Stair #9 The last set! At the top of the stairs, these guys starting chanting "We're not worthy" when they saw us coming up that last set.

My First Day with the Twos!

2008-10-13T13:17:00.007-07:00

It was a pretty cold morning this morning (the car temp said 50 degrees....brrrr). I had to dig around to find Evan a pair of pants...I was shocked to find his pants don't fit him anymore (they're like capris on him now). The boy is finally growing taller! I did find a pair of pants I thought were way too long for him, but they fit him perfectly. We're finally in a size 12 month pant!

Evan's first day in his new classroom today! When I dropped him off, he wasn't too sure of things. There were only 2 other children there in his class and his regular morning teacher wasn't there yet. I handed him to the teacher on duty and he didn't cry, so that was a good thing.

The report when we picked him up was that he had a GREAT day! He buddied around with his best bud Hayden (who just turned 2 but is a good head taller than Evan is).

Our Little Punkin'!

2008-10-12T12:44:00.001-07:00

Evan's first trip to Apple Annie's up in Willcox didn't thrill him too much. He did love watching the tractors go by. We're hoping he'll now realize that Dad doesn't drive a tractor (he always points to the tractor in one of his books and says "Dad-da").

The weather couldn't have been better (a little overcast for Mom would have made it perfect). The bad weather from Hurricane Norbert blew through our region on Friday and Saturday, so it was relatively chilly (in the upper 60's). You can hear the wind in these clips.

At Apple Annie's, you can pick your own pumpkins and other items such as sunflowers, peppers and squash. We found a decent sized pumpkin that wasn't roughed up too much to carve up for Halloween. There are hayrides that take you further out into the patch and a corn maze to wander through. The best part was the caramel kennel corn for Dad.

It was hard getting Evan to do 2 things at once: stand still and look at the camera. He's caught on to the whole camera thing and wants to hold the camera himself. You can get him to stand still, but he'll be stubborn and not look at the camera.

Wandering the pumpkin patch:

Helping Dad with the pumpkin:

Riding back to the barn:

Playing in the corn bin:

Walking through the corn maze..."Children of the Corn" flashback! Lookout for Malachi!

Going to Apple Annie's On Sunday!

2008-10-11T12:55:00.001-07:00

Here is a an aerial view of the corn maze at Apple Annie's

Moving to the 2s on Monday!

2008-10-09T22:19:00.002-07:00

I wasn't sure if I posted earlier, but we found out Evan will be moving up to the 2-year old room on Monday the 13th! A few days this week his teachers tested the water and took him over there for an hour or so. From what I heard, he did great...since he was the "new kid" the older 2s were over-protective of him (how cute). We'll see how long that lasts! ;-)

On Tuesday morning I stopped into his new room so I could meet the morning teacher (Ms. Yvette) and she is very aware of Evan's food challenges and vertical challenge (height). Luckily, one of Evan's 1-year teachers has bumped up to the class, so he'll have someone looking out for him. It was a little shocking to see how much bigger these kids are (and how much they talk).

Jacuzzi Bubbles

2008-10-02T20:43:00.000-07:00

Evan has his own unique way of making a jacuzzi bath...

Art Work Update

2008-10-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

A catch-up on some old artwork of Evan's. There weren't any dates on these, so we'll just call them...Late Summer 2008 Collection. I've added artwork to some old posts. To view them, just click the "artwork" label.

Ravioli Drumset

2008-09-30T21:39:00.006-07:00

I know a video of a kid eating is not very exciting....but this is like capturing an exotic wild animal on film. This is Evan, eating his second plate of ravioli at 8:40pm tonight. He picked the can out of the pantry and handed it to me (I thought he was just playing around). After handing me the can, he pulled his high chair into the kitchen (he doesn't really like sitting in his high chair). I guess he wasn't joking! Ironically, this is all after just getting a bath (so much for a clean kid). His rhythm isn't too bad either.

Evan is always the best helper cleaning up...I was finally able to get him to say "night, night".

Our Little Newsie!

2008-09-22T20:50:00.008-07:00

Here are the pics Evan's daycare took the other week. They dressed all the kids up in these vintage-style outfits. He just needs a paper route now!!

Here was Evan last year when they took similar pictures....oh what a difference a year makes!! Note the red eyes from crying (he was probably trying to say...."Get me out of this box")!! He was about 16 pounds in this pic...he still hovering in the very low 20's now (so he's not that much bigger now than he was in this old pic).

Get Your Motor Runnin' (Not Yet)

2008-09-20T21:54:00.004-07:00

Poor Evan has trouble fitting on toys that are supposed to be for his age range. This was one of his presents from a co-worker of ours...as you can see it's huge for him. He can manage to get himself on and off, but can barely touch the floor.

Stand Still Will Ya!

2008-09-19T22:29:00.004-07:00

Is there some switch that goes off with a 2-year old that makes them not want to stand still for one second for a picture?? I was trying to get a pic of Evan with his Gator shirt on (in anticipation of the Florida-Tennessee game on Saturday).

Nice nose pick!

The look he gave me after swatting the camera away:

Our Pooh-crack Baby!

2008-09-18T21:16:00.006-07:00

Evan has never been one to get sucked into watching television or videos...until recently. The boy has become a Pooh-addict! We're not sure where it came from....possibly because there are Pooh wall stickers in his daycare? We now have our DVR set to tape every epsiode of "My Friends Tigger & Pooh" on the Disney channel. If there is a t.v. on in the house, it must have Pooh on (but of course not Dad's big screen t.v.).

All this has come about at the same time that Evan is starting to eat really well. When we pick him up, he is getting noticeably heavier. When putting him to bed the other night I noticed that his legs are getting longer...he's starting to leave that baby-look behind...sort of sad, though. His vocabulary is still pretty limited our running tally is:

"ights" = outside
"ot" = hot
"Pooh" = um, yeah, no definition needed there
"bye bye" (said with an accent like Cartman from South Park)
"ba" = Max, Sadie, bottle and ball (little confusing)
"cook-cook" = cookie
"caca" = cracker
"va-va" = water
"go"
"tee-tee" = thank you
"noooo"
"ooooh"
"oh" (said with sort of an Andrew Dice Clay inflection for those of you who remember who he was)
"mine"
"mah" = more
"mama" (finally)
"dada"
He also has a mumbled word that starts with a "tee" sound that we figured out was "trash". He loves throwing things away in the trash can!

What Does This Switch Do?

2008-09-14T21:49:00.003-07:00

Evan is a smart kid...I should say, a sneaky smart kid (even more dangerous). I caught him in his room standing on top of a little end table, flipping the light switches. For some reason, he didn't want to wear shorts that afternoon.

Fall Collage

2008-09-11T22:46:00.000-07:00

Mmmm....Chewy Chips Ahoy!

2008-09-08T15:38:00.004-07:00

We now have visual proof that Evan will eat a cookie....Chewy Chips Ahoy to be exact. He's particular about the cookie though; he only eats it as far down as he is holding it...so he leaves little cookie nibs behind.

Up until now, we couldn't get him to eat the typical bad things kids eat (cookies, candy, etc...). We just need to keep putting calories in him however we can.

Playing in the Pool

2008-09-06T10:33:00.002-07:00

We had a pool put in this year...as you can see...it's HUGE! Max thinks it's his big drinking bowl! Evan wasn't too thrilled with it.

Jail and Bail

2008-09-04T23:14:00.007-07:00

The March of Dimes Jail and Bail went as well as expected today. We picked Evan up right before lunchtime/nap time and were ready for the worse. As soon as I get pics from the event organizers, I'll post them. Evan had fun running around the restaurant with another little boy (who was 4 months younger than him, but a lot bigger than he was). Evan started to poop out about 1pm; so we took him back to daycare to let him "sleep it off".

If you wish to donate to Evan's "Bail", here is the link: http://jailandbail.marchofdimes.com/evandorris

Evan looking at his display board with Dad:

The vids aren't very good since Evan was antsy

Training in Bisbee

2008-08-30T16:30:00.003-07:00

In a previous post I think I mentioned how Evan and I are usually in Bisbee every weekend "training" for the annual Bisbee 1000 Stairclimb in October. Evan has been doing great in the backpack and manages to find a comfy position to sleep in during the walk! My co-worker Terri has been joining us and these are some pics she took with her camera phone.

A view of Castle Rock and the Bisbee "B":

Evan and I making it up the last set of stairs (Perley Street steps):

Evan waiting for the "magic door" to open on the van:

Is this kid too cool or what?!

Sand Art

2008-08-27T22:44:00.000-07:00

Last Check-up with the Pulm

2008-08-23T08:05:00.003-07:00

Today Evan had a check-up with his pulmonologist, Dr. Brown. It's great that Dr. Brown comes down to Sierra Vista now. Of course, Evan was sounding crispy thanks to one of his daycare buds having croup the week prior. We weren't expecting a huge weight gain (and we were right)...20 pounds 14 ounces (and that was him fully dressed). He measured at 30.5 inches, so I think that's a .25 inch gain in height from his 2-year old check up in July.

Despite Evan sounding horrible, Dr. Brown doesn't need to see him anyone! He wants us to continue giving him the albuterol treatments every so often when he's sounding bad.

Checking Out My Favorite Shows

2008-08-17T10:48:00.004-07:00

Evan has been fascinated by the Playhouse Disney page on the computer. He can't quite work the mouse, but understands how to click. His current favorite TV show webpages to view are "Handy Manny", "My Friends Tigger and Pooh", and "Little Einsteins".

Evan's an Ambassador!

2008-08-12T08:45:00.000-07:00

Today I got a call from the March of Dimes office in Tucson and was notified that Evan will be an "Ambassador" at the Sierra Vista Jail and Bail Event in September. We're not sure what all that entails (I don't think he gets a crown)! ;-)

Info on what Jail and Bail is all about:

One of the March of Dimes favorite events, Jail & Bail brings together community leaders and ordinary citizens for a common cause... fighting birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. Since its inception in 1957, more than 5 million citizens have volunteered their time in the name of fun - and a good cause.

At this event, volunteer "jailbirds" serve time in a "mock jail." "Prisoners" are arraigned before a volunteer judge on trumped-up, outlandish charges, such as "reckless golf-cart driving." They are then sentenced to spend an hour in "the slammer" to raise bail in the form of donations to the March of Dimes. Nearly 500 events are held annually across the country.

Yummy Garlic Powder!

2008-08-10T15:07:00.003-07:00

Evan has found a new "fun place" in the house...the corner cabinet and spice rack. He does a great job taking lids off....but it's the putting them back on that he hasn't mastered yet. Needless to say, the smell of garlic powder sticks on ya for a while.

Cool Dude

2008-08-09T15:02:00.001-07:00

Ever since we can remember, Evan has never liked wearing hats or having anything on his face...it seems he's taking a liking to a pair of sunglasses. His nose is still a bit short to keep them up on his face.

Today we went to an open house being held by our church...Evan was the cutest guy there with his sunglasses on (of course). He even ate a few bites of a hot dog for me! He was the biggest helper running back an forth to the garbage can throwing away his plate and cup.

Back To His Normal Self?

2008-08-07T22:29:00.003-07:00

Evan's cranky-pants phase at daycare has passed quickly (for now)! After experiencing the "tough love" from the teachers, he's back to his regular self! His eating habits still change from day to day...2 days ago he was a crazy-good eater; yesterday, not so much; today, a good eating day (2 servings of mixed veggies.....what's up with that)?. He's definitely doing things on his time! All of a sudden, he has started using sign language for "more". He's also able to point to an object in a book after we ask him to find it.

Bubble Machine

2008-08-01T15:11:00.002-07:00

Evan loves bubbles!

Even Dad likes playing with the bubbles!

Extreme Cranky Pants

2008-07-29T20:23:00.004-07:00

For the past few days at daycare, Evan has had a big personality shift (so to say). Towards the end of last week, Evan started getting very clingy and wanted to be held all the time. The teachers thought maybe he was sick since the funk has been going around; but we noticed he was fine at home.

Yesterday, he pitched such a fit that we had to pick him up at 10am. As soon as we headed out the door of the daycare, he was absolutely fine....hmmmm, there's a pattern here. This morning, he went into his usual fit when I dropped him off. I watched him via the close-circuit camera system at the front desk and saw he was an absolute cranky-pants (which is not his usual self). He got so bad, his teacher had take him away from the breakfast table since he kept flinging his head backward.

One of the head ladies at the school watched with me and we realized that Evan was totally "playing" Ms. Sara, his teacher. Whenever she walked away, he would go into a fit; when she would try to comfort him, he would quiet down (what a player)! We decided the course of action would be for Sara to totally ignore him and it worked! Sara called me later in the morning to say he was settled down. I think he realized at a certain point that it wasn't working and turned back into his regular self.

It seems Evan's behavior is the unfortunate result of him being so well liked by the teachers that they do tend to coddle him more than the other children in his class. Since he's the "little guy" they like to protect him from the bigger (but younger) kids. So now they have to be a little "tougher" on him, which is fine since he can't be out of control in class.

Here is pic of Evan doing a very bad thing...sitting on Max. For some reason, Evan tries to ride Max and Sadie and he'll chase them all over the yard and house (poor pups). With Max's hip problems, it's a big no-no, and Evan just doesn't understand.

Playing in the Yard

2008-07-28T16:02:00.003-07:00

You can see in the video that Sadie had a little surgery today. She had a tumor on her right front leg (I guess you could call it the shoulder area). The vet said they were able to get it all, but we have to keep a watch on the area since the type of tumor she had can return.

I had her shaved down at the groomers a few days ago since she was shedding like crazy. She has a Siamese-cat-like look to her now!

Tissue

2008-07-23T22:44:00.001-07:00

Blue

2008-07-21T22:43:00.001-07:00

2-Year Old Check-Up

2008-07-15T11:50:00.002-07:00

Evan had his 2-year check-up today and we were hopeful to see him post a weight over 20 pounds. He made it with an extra 2 oz! So Evan at 2 years and 1 day, weighs 20 pounds 2 ounces. His height is now 30.25 inches, so he's gained a bit of height.

No significant things to report from the doctor's visit aside from Evan sounding a bit wheezy to the doc. Never fails that Evan gets congested right before going to the doc; so we'll try to give him an albuterol treatment to help clear him out.

Happy 2nd Birthday!

2008-07-14T11:54:00.005-07:00

Happy 2nd birthday to the Ev-man!

Blowing out the candle on his cake:

Evan likes imitating Dad when he's playing with the Wii:

2-year Old Pics

2008-07-14T09:49:00.009-07:00

Evan turned two today...and with pictures today, he had to turn "terrible two"! We were lucky to get what we got!

Party Day...Let the Rains Begin!

2008-07-13T11:55:00.004-07:00

It started out a beautiful day...we had high hopes that the rain would hold off! By 4pm the skies had clouded up, the wind shifted and the temperature dropped about 15 degrees...we still had high hopes the rain would hold off! Well...the rain came down...hard!!

You can see a storm off in the distance...but that wasn't the storm that would visit us! The deluge came from the mountains in the west.

As the storm approaches (you can hear the thunder)...we tried to get Evan to open presents (it just wasn't happening). He got locked on to Joey and Deb's present.

A vid of the die-hards who rode the storm out. Thanks to everyone who helped us load up.

Trying to Get Caught Up

2008-07-12T08:37:00.003-07:00

Apologies for the lack of posts...with the grandparents flying in, it's been hectic. We hope to get things updated after this weekend. I got an e-mail from one of my oldest friends from high school (who ironically also is a Theta)...she and her husband will be travelling to China in a few weeks to pick up their new daughter! I added Tracey's blog to my list on the right, so you can read about their adventures.

New Slideshow

2008-07-09T21:30:00.002-07:00

Here are some pics from the past year...the blog page cuts off the right side unfortunately. You can mute the music on the window since it loops the same song over and over. :-)

Free MySpace slideshows, photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Spider Bite! :-(

2008-07-02T23:40:00.006-07:00

One of the downsides to all the monsoon rain we've been getting, it brings the spiders and bugs out. Today at daycare Evan was "bit" by a tarantula. The daycare director said this was the first time in the 20 years she has been there that this has happened. The kids were outside for waterplay and they managed to capture the spider so we could take it to the ER with us. It was just a precaution to take him to the ER since the daycare personnel had already contacted poison control and knew this wasn't an emergency situation.

Luckily, Evan didn't have an allergic reaction to the bites. By the time we picked him up, he was playing like nothing unusual happened aside from all the attention he was getting. The spider was definitely the hit of the ER for the morning. We figured out it was a male and it was about 4-5 inches across.

The spider left 8 marks on him that look like bite marks, but the spacing between them seemed too big for a bite. The ER doctor thinks maybe the spider pinched him, which he said is typical for tarantulas. One of the ER nurses thought maybe Evan was having an skin reaction to the hairs on the spider since that is also a defense mechanism for tarantulas. After about an hour in the ER we really don't know exactly how the marks got there (if it was a bite, a pinch, or from hairs), but Evan's absolutely fine. T took the spider and released him back into the wild up on post.

The bite trail:

Evan was his normal nutty self waiting for the doc:

Click here if you want to read more about tarantula bites: http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/TOPIC550.HTM

Stair Climbing in Bisbee

2008-06-28T21:03:00.005-07:00

On the weekends, Evan and I head down to Bisbee to "walk the stairs" to get in shape for the upcoming Bisbee Stairclimb in October. There are three legs to the course and we did the first two legs today.

Evan was thrilled as usual:

We're trying to grow grass in the backyard and luckily I got the seed down before we had some good monsoon rains. The yard looks a mess right now and unfortunately the dogs have to stay off of it until it grows.

Evan wondering when he can play on the grass:

Evan enjoys doing his fence-security walks...