Fun times with Kate and Matt!

One busy week leads into another around here!

After a fun shower weekend for Andy and Angela, I took a quick work trip to Charlotte on Tuesday and had an awesome Book Club meeting on Thursday at Angela's house. Friday, Ben went out to happy hour with Pat, while Tyler and I had some quality Mommy & T time!

Saturday, we welcomed Kate and Matt for the night! It was so great seeing them! Matt had just returned from deployment and the newly engaged couple had a fun road trip planned. First stop...Atlanta!

First things first...we had to stop at Pho for lunch!

Then it was off to Whirlyball! We met 10 of our friends at the Whirlyball court and had a blast! Tyler loved watching while Ben and I took turns playing (who knew Whirlyball was such a great babysitter...seriously, the kid was glued to the glass for the entire hour)!

After Whirlyball we hosted everyone back at our house for a bbq that turned into a late night poker party! A great time was had by all!

Sunday, we went to the Braves game (Tyler's first) and wrapped things up with Tyler's 16 month photo shoot! I didn't intend on having professional shots done of him until December but when a family friend's daughter asked to put Tyler in her portfolio in exchange for a free photo shoot..we couldn't refuse! Enjoy the pics!!!

Friends and Family in Town!!!

April has been jam packed with lots of fun and visits from family and friends! The weekend April 9th was definitely a busy one.

Friday, my parents came into town to babysit T while Ben and I went out to Sugo to celebrate his birthday! It was an amazing meal and we had a great date night!
Happy Birthday to my WONDERFUL husband! Not to mention, the best father to Tyler that I could ever ask for! It warms my heart in an unimaginable way to see my two boys together!

Saturday, I headed to the airport to pick up Rienna and Bianca and was in MAJOR party planning mode after that!
Steph, Anastasia and I threw a Baby Shower for our friends Andy and Angela who are expecting their baby girl in June. We were so excited to host a "story book themed" shower for them! We got to welcome a lot of college friends in town for a mini reunion!
It was a blast!
After the shower, Andy and Angela hosted everyone at their house for a shrimp boil! Ben stayed home and watched the babies after their bedtime so that Rienna and I were able to stay up late with all of our college buds (Leah, Jannell, Rienna, Donna, Shaun, Andy, Angela, Jray, Anastasia and many others were on hand) reminiscing about old times! I laughed so hard it hurt!!!

Sunday, we went to brunch at Peachtree Diner and said goodbye to everyone! My, what a Busy Busy weekend!!!

Cooper River Bridge Run!!!

And BAM!!! Just like that it's April! Where does the time go? We started our first weekend in April by going to Charleston for the Cooper River Bridge Run. Ben's parents came down for the weekend and we all rented a condo in Folly Beach! It was beautiful weather which made for the perfect run! I didn't think that I could make it 6 miles, but I surprised myself (and Ben too I think) by running the whole way! I can't wait to do it again next year!!!

Saturday night we met Jannell in Folly Beach for a few drinks, and Sunday we did a trip out to Ft. Sumter! We had a great time in Charleston! Enjoy the pics!!!

Monday I visited a couple of clinics in Charleston for work before we headed home. But wouldn't you know it...Tyler started running a fever of 101 as we drove back to ATL. I was really worried because he also had a bad cough, so we went straight to urgent care as soon as we got home. Turned out he had bronchilitis (picked it up from a kid in his class that had RSV) and we were home bound with him for two days.

When is the immune system adjustment to daycare going to kick in??? Your guess is as good as mine. I had to cancel a work trip to St. Louis but it was worth it to make sure my baby was okay!

The good news is that Tyler was back in daycare by Thursday and was officially moved into the Toddler room! He LOVES it! They keep the kids so busy that he's exhausted by 7:30!

He loves his class and his little friends!

Aren't toddlers the cutest things ever (except the temper tantrums)??? I love this age!

Run Benny Run!!!

Time to catch everyone up on the happenings of the Sullivans!

I'm happy to report that Tyler is doing MUCH MUCH better these days. He's happily adjusted to daycare and has made lots of friends! He's eating and sleeping better...and even getting promoted to the Toddler program soon!

The week of March 7th, I was in a work training all week but was able to make book club on Thursday which was tons of fun!

That Friday Ben and I hit the road with Baby T to Spartanburg for the weekend. It was good for Tyler to get some time with his Nana and Papa and Uncle Travis and Aunt Kelly. Plus, my grandmother (Mama Bobbie for those out there that know her) was just moved to assisted living so it was important for me to visit with her since she's really down about it. Tyler was the hit of the old folks home, that's for sure! He ran around and screamed and laughed and the little old ladies just ate it up!

Sunday night I was on a plane to Raleigh for my first official work trip. I was able to have dinner on Sunday night with my BFF Johanna and went out with my good friend Chesare on Monday night for dinner and drinks! Good times all around. I flew home Tuesday night and we hung low the rest of the week.

Saturday, Nana and Papa drove to Atlanta for the day so that Ben and I could go look at houses with our realtor...that's right...in other Sullivan news, we've decided to put our house on the market! Who knows if or when it will sell, but we figured it's now or never!

We need a bigger house if we ever want to have another kid, so it's time to make the move! We LOVE our house and our neighbors and will miss them dearly but it's definitely time!

So fingers crossed for us!

Sunday March 20th, Ben ran and completed his first Half Marathon! I was so proud of him!!! Tyler and I made it downtown in time to see him cross the finish line and get his medal! After the half marathon, we went straight to the airport to pick up Ben's mom. She was in town for a few days to help Ben while I went to Dallas for work. It was a great week in Dallas and I met a lot of coworkers and really got to bond with my team!

While I was gone, Tyler had his 15 month check up and got spoiled rotten! I got home on Friday in time to crash with my boys.... We were all exhausted! Saturday we did our normal walk to Dunkin Donuts, I got my hair cut, and Tyler and I had a play date with Emma and Bella at Yogli Mogli...that place is sinful!!!

Sunday was church followed by dinner and drinks at our pad with Steph, Pat and Dylan!

It's certainly been a fun March!!!!!!!!!!!

When you know you're a parent...

I wish I could say that starting my new job has been easy...because it certainly hasn't. Don't get me wrong...I'm actually really really happy at my new job. It's challenging, I'm learning a ton, and I have a great boss. The company dynamic is great too!!! That part has been awesome!

Other highlights of the past few weeks include a visit from Aunt Kera. When she arrived on the 12th, we hung out with all of our friends from college at Fado's and took Tyler to the zoo on Sunday. We had a blast(enjoy the pics)! Ben, Tyler and I have also been enjoying the park now that Tyler can walk and we had a great bbq with friends on the 19th. And let's not forget Valentine's! Ben and I exchanged small gifts and took Tyler to a" make your own pizza" place that he loved! Those have been some major highlights of the month for us!

But the past two weeks have really thrown us for a loop!

Tyler has ALWAYS been extremely healthy. The majority of his visits to the doctor over the past year have been strictly wellness visits.

Now, I knew to expect runny noses and ear aches when Tyler started daycare full time...they go hand in hand...but I didn't expect things to get this bad. Here's the story...

Tyler started acting cranky on Monday the 21st and running a low grade fever. We thought it was due to teething because he's getting in his back molars. Ben and I didn't think too much of it but I went ahead and made a doctor's appt for Tuesday because Tyler had a fever of 101 when he woke up. The nurse said she thought it was an ear infection. Sure enough, that's exactly what it was. Tyler was prescribed Pink Bubble Gum medicine and sent home.

Ben dropped the prescription off to be filled and then took Tyler home for a nap because he just wasn't feeling well.

Tyler was sleeping for about 40 minutes and Ben was working from home....I was at work (you can't really call in sick for your kid when your only 3 weeks into a new job).

After 40 minutes had passed, Ben started hearing some grunting noises on Tyler's video monitor. He looked at the monitor and noticed Tyler was shaking. He went upstairs to check on him and that's when he saw that he was unconscious and having a seizure. He went into full on panic mode (rightfully so)!! He called 911 and then called me! I raced to my car and drove about 100 mph to get to the hospital. Ben called me to give me updates when the paramedics arrived. I got to the hospital before the ambulance did and was a hysterical mess.

Tyler had what is called a Febrile seizure. Sometimes a seizure is a child's way of reacting to spike in body temperature. Tyler's fever went from 101 - 104 in about 45 minutes...explaining the seizure. Unfortunately Febrile seizures can be hereditary and Tyler got my genes. I had seizures when I was little, but grew out of them by age 6.

After we all recovered from the seizure, things started to get normal again. I had to cancel my trip to Vegas (which was absolutely devastating) but I knew it was the right thing to do. Ben and I enjoyed a quiet weekend at home mending our little man back to 100%.

Well, this past week we were thrown for yet another loop when the daycare called us on Tuesday to let us know that Tyler had what looked like "ant bites" on his body. By Wednesday they had turned into hives, and by Thursday his entire body was covered...along with extremely swollen hands and feet. Also, his fever was coming back. I rushed home from work on Thursday to make sure Tyler didn't have another seizure. We took him to the doctor (once on Wednesday and then again on Thursday) only to discover that Tyler was having an allergic reaction to the penicillin that had been prescribed to him.

The doctor put Tyler on Steroids to bring down the swelling, and we've been on high alert ever since. There have been many sleepless nights over the past few weeks. We've spent many many nights worrying and I've shed many tears because I can't make the pain or itching go away!

But we are coming out on the other end of the sickness funk and I'm hoping and praying that things will be back to normal soon! But it's times like these that you realize you truly are a parent.

I would GLADLY do anything in this world to make Tyler's pain go away. I would lay my own life down for him in a heartbeat and not question my decision for a second. You know you are a parent when your heart physically aches and you have trouble catching your own breath when you know that your child is not well.

It's that love that makes life worth living...

Baby Steps!!!

Oh my! So much has happened recently and I've been very delinquent on my blogging! My apologies!

So...January 31st began my last week of staying home with Tyler before he started preschool and I started my new job! It was a fun week...but bittersweet at the same time!

But wouldn't you know that Tyler decided to take his OFFICIAL FIRST STEPS on January 31st! It was a BIG day in the Sullivan house!

The story goes as follows...I was cooking dinner and Tyler was in the kitchen playing with his magnets on the refrigerator. I turned around to check on him and he was standing with his hands off of the refrigerator and took two small steps. I started screaming and he started laughing at me! This led to a repeat session in order to get me to scream again! What can I say...my kid is amused quite easily!

I tried to get Tyler to repeat the big event for Ben when he came home...but alas, he would not perform.

However, it was only just a couple of days later that he started taking 3 or 4 steps at a time!

We were so excited to show off Tyler's walking skills just in time for Aunt Kate's arrival from Baltimore for the weekend.

We had a great time hosting her!

She arrived on Thursday night and left on Saturday! Highlights included seeing Tyler take lots of baby steps, a trip to Pho, a trip to Ippolito's Italian for dinner, and a "trail run" at daycare, where Tyler got to play in his classroom for about 1/2 an hour while Ben, Kate and I watched.

Kate left on Saturday evening, just in time to get everything ready for our Super Bowl Sunday party. We hosted 14 friends and 5 kids at our house and had a great time. Needless to say I didn't have too much time to watch football or commercials with a house full of people and a new toddling Tyler on my hands but I did manage to get in a cocktail or two (or three) and have fun with the crowd once Tman was in bed for the night!

Enjoy the video of Tyler walking!

New Happenings

I've been delinquent in keeping everyone up to date on the Sullivans for far too long! So many things have been happening and being a stay at home mom has made blogging even more difficult! Tyler is a handful and limits my time to just sit down and write. After our return from Charlotte, I had my interview with Concentra on Tuesday the 18th. Concentra is a very large company recently purchased by Humana that owns Urgent Care/Physical Therapy Clinics across the US. I interviewed for a Field Training Manager and was thrilled to receive the job offer 48 hours after my interview! That was certainly huge news in the Sullivan house! So the rest of the week was spent securing a full time preschool for Tyler. We enrolled him at Primrose School in Alpharetta. Other highlights of our week included playdates with Steph and Dylan and my monthly Book Club. We also had a awesome night Friday when Steph and Pat hosted everyone at their house for game night. Myself, Ben, Steph, Pat, Roberta, Mike, Andy and Angela enjoyed an old fashioned Shrimp Boil and a hilarious game of Balderdash after the boys were tucked in bed for the night. We stayed the night over at Steph and Pat's to make it easier on Tyler and he had a great time the next morning playing with Dylan. We finished the weekend off with some family time!

The next week Tyler had an eventful week. We went to Northpoint Mall with one of his many girlfriends, Bella, to ride the train and carousel. He loved it of course. We also had a great playdate on Friday with Steph and Dylan and Angela came over to hang out too!

Friday night my parents came into town to babysit so that Ben and I could celebrate my new job at our favorite steak restaurant, Bones. The steak literally melts in your mouth!

Saturday, we went to the aquarium where Tyler had the time of his life! He kept saying WHOA everytime he saw a fish...considering we were at an aquarium that was a LOT of WHOA's!!!

Sunday we went to church and Tyler had a playdate with our next door neighbors.

Enjoy the aquarium pics!!! More updates on the new job and Tyler's preschool to come!!!