Snow Central

At this point, we have so much snow in the yard that it is Work to sled, so we've resorted to sledding on the driveway...not much of a thrill! They have to "paddle" to keep the sled moving! They look just like penguins. I couldn't resist the back porch picture...why does every thing turn into a wrestling match? I was just commenting on Saturday (during a match) that we could in fact get rid of all their toys because 80% of the time they are wrestling and the other 20% they spend racing around our loop on rollerblades. The first picture, is two lazy boys who can't be bothered to get through the snow to the real hill to sled! Their sleds keep sinking in because the snow is so fluffy, so they appear to have given up before they started! Matt made a mound with the loader; they are pretending to be penguins and are sliding down on their bellies. The last picture, along the driveway, is just to give some idea of the amount we have! I think about 2.5 feet, but haven't actually measure it.

Lately, the routine at supper has been to help cook it! Last night we had fajitas (isn't it great when you happen on a recipe and just happen to have ALL the ingredients!). They both donned their aprons and Thomas put the tea cozy on his head when they started. I sliced the meat, Thomas found and added all the seasoning. Nathan shredded the cheese, peeled and chopped the avocado, ripped the lettuce while Thomas set the table. Then Thomas, cut up the tomatoes, peppers and onions. Wow! I just kept things going and used the stove! Wonderful to have help in the kitchen! I'll take all I get. The more you let them do, the more they can do!

I did take Nathan to a ENT doctor of Children's Hopsital last Friday. He first had a thorough hearing test in a chamber with an audiologist. His middle ear on both sides are entirely full of fluid causing moderate hearing loss in his right ear and mild hearing loss in his left ear. His inner ear cavities are fine and work perfectly. We are treating the fluid for 20 days with antibiotic. Feb. 12 we go back in for a follow-up. If the fluid persists, he will have tubes put in. I began to fret (in front of the doctor) that I hadn't come to him sooner and the doctor told me not to worry, no permanent damage has occurred. My feeling is that, indeed the fluid may go from the use of antibiotic, but it certainly isn't a permanent fix. Every time we go to the doctor (usually just well-child checkups), he has fluid in his ears. The ENT (who actually is the same one that did Nathan's tonsil/adenoid surgery this summer) says his gut feeling is that I am right, so we actually scheduled the tube surgery for Feb. 22. I was told if it weren't for tubes, Nathan would need hearing aids, that is how bad his hearing is! It took us a while to even realize that he wasn't hearing. We thought it was a "processing" issue and then we thought he was in his own world. We are fixing it now, so I better stop fretting over the past!