tests tests and more tests.

i had to get a life organizer on my ipad. Hudson has had more appointments in his short 3.5 months of life than emmy has ever had in her nearly 3 years of life. i used to consider my memory above average. after the first little, i experienced a slight decrease in the brain functioning department and now with a second little, all i see is a 'gone fishin' sign when i try to recall thoughts and events. such is life, and thank heavens they have an app for that. our sweet Hudson boy had another hearing test last week, which went much better, but the next baby arrived before his testing was complete forcing us to return again tomorrow. he had ear molds done last week for his teeny tiny baby hearing aids which he will be fitted for in the middle of august. i'm anxious to know if this will be the answer. i'm hoping hearing aids is all it will take. i know the cochlear implant surgery is a wonderful thing...if it works. if it doesn't work, it completely strips the ear of any sound whatsoever with no way to fix it. quite a big decision to make. one that i would be terrified to make. at Hudson's last weeks' test, we were told if his hearing really is in the range they thought it was showing in the most recent test, than he wouldn't even be a candidate for cochlear implants anyway because hearing aids would be the solution.

music.
to.
my.
ears.

and soon music to his ears. he would be able to develop his speech and everything at a somewhat normal pace and catch right up to his little pals by the time he goes to school. we want nothing more than for him than to feel normal and accepted despite this slight setback. we are prepared to do whatever it takes. and i will keep you posted.

birfdayyy

guess what? i just finished cupcakes for breakfast. i know, that's not all that uncommon, but they tasted even better today because it is my birthday! yesterday we had family celebrations with a dinner at greg's parents house and today my sweet husband is gonna take me and the littles out on the town to do whatever i please. what more could a gal ask for than a special day spent with some very favorites?

not a happy camper.

I've got the itch to go beach camping. that happens every summer. most likely because my parents took me camping every summer of my childhood at Rissers Beach in Nova Scotia. some of my fondest memories were made there and i want my littles to experience it all. the only problem is that my husband isn't much of a camper. don't get me wrong, he's perfectly happy on a beach and he has no issues falling asleep in...well any circumstance really, he's just not much of a boy scout, and he will be the first to admit it. you see, gregory joined boy scouts as a wee lad. he lasted a couple of years until they really started to learn survival skills. he was shocked to learn that the best way to keep warm in an emergency situation was to remove your clothes and have skin to skin contact with your buddy. little gregory was appalled by this news and quit immediately...thus resulting in little to no boy scout skills whatsoever. I'm not saying you have to have been a boy scout in your youth to camp, but i'm pretty sure he was traumatized which explains his lack of interest. we tried camping last summer just us, his sisters and their husbands. we left if up to the boys to pick a spot and i'm pretty sure they selected the most ghetto campground in tarnation. a large portion of the folks actually lived there all year round. it was bad. it was hot, and we didn't even last 24 hours. this was the camping trip that was supposed to instill a love for camping in my sweet husband's heart. camping fail. next time we will do it right. i will take him to Rissers Beach. that'll do the trick.

there will be 3.

i've officially decided  on 3. that's right. i said it. i want one more kid. three sounds good. no more, no less. unless of course a certain someone from up above plays a sick joke on me and "blesses" us with multiples...otherwise three it will be. not anytime soon of course, as i am still a slave to the needs of a newly birthed human and i'm not by any means quite that mental. no offense to those of you who get 'er done real quick, that craziness is just not for me.  Hudson is a gem of a baby. a real jolly fellow, and thus the deciding factor for the plans of a third. speaking of the Huds...upon deciding on a name for our dear boy, i took it upon myself to see what his name actually meant, and was thrilled with what i saw.

Gender: M
Origin of Hudson: English
Meaning of Hudson: "Hugh's son"
Hudson's Popularity in 2011: #112

(found on nameberry.com)

ummm, do you even realize that my maiden name is Hughes!?!? absolutely perfect.

another 4th

our summer has been truly delightful thus far, and the 4th of july has most definitely been a highlight. we started a new tradition of donuts at the park for breakfast that i hope will continue. the littles quite enjoyed being able to run free on a sugar high and as they continue to multiply in our family, i think it will be something that all of the wee cousins will look forward to each year. we celebrated the rest of the day with a BBQ, swimming, games and we topped our day of with a firework show fully viewable from the back yard. it doesn't get much better than that. i am certain that i am the most patriotic canadian in america!

the ol' ball game

over the weekend, we attended a Padres game. we do that once a year. The Moore's (of the Tanner and Alana variety) joined us. the gals and their littles all sported padres gear. it was a lovely way to spend a summer evening.

our little guy

ten weeks ago our sweet boy graced us with his charm. ten weeks ago i fell in love all over again with another perfect little being. ten weeks ago we found out our precious baby boy might be deaf.

when i first laid eyes on Hudson Gregory my heart melted. cute as a button, ten fingers ten toes...everything was just right. You can imagine our heartbreak when the results came back from his newborn hearing screening as a fail. the nurses were optimistic. they told us it was so early, and he may still have fluid in his ears so another basic test was scheduled for when he was ten days old. he failed again. a more extensive test had to be done to determine for sure if he did indeed have some form of hearing loss, and that's when it was confirmed that our little guy's ears had some issues. initially i was quite distraught to say the least. not because of the potential struggles we were bound to face in our near future, but because this was going to be one of Hudson's greatest trials in life. this was the card he was dealt and i didn't think it was fair. i felt so sad for him, but i snapped out of it real quick. this isn't life threatening. this isn't something that will drastically change the way we live our everyday lives. we can handle this. he was blessed with positive, loving and supportive family and friends. together we will get him through it all. its not yet known as to how intense his hearing loss is. after a couple of attempts, we still don't have clear results due to his lack of napping skills during the tests. best case scenario, he wont need any kind of amplification though he will have a hard time understanding what people are saying in crowded noisy situations. worst case scenario, either his cochlea or his nerve didn't form fully and not even cochlear implants will benefit him resulting in us learning sign language as primary communication with him. Judging by what he reacts to daily his exceptionally loud sister startles him on a regular basis, among other things we feel that he wont end up in the worst case category. we have a lot of testing ahead of us. since we are still unsure, they are going to treat our case as if he needs amplification and start him with hearing aids to see if we notice a difference in him at all. once they can start testing him in a booth, which starts around six months of age, we will get a much better idea of what level hearing loss he has. when he is about a year old, if the hearing aids don't do the trick they plan to do an MRI to take a look at the cochlea and nerve to determine if he's a candidate for cochlear implants. we are so very grateful for technology and the things they can do for hearing loss today. its amazing to me that in some cases they can completely restore one of our five senses. I don't feel sad for him anymore. he was given this challenge because with our encouragement and support he will be able to handle it like a champ. this just makes him extra sweet and i don't plan on treating him any differently because of it. we have a lot of love in our little family, and i've said it before...all you need is love.

summer skin

This time of year is certainly one of my very favorites. Our skin is sun-kissed, our feet are bare and we are carefree. summertime is upon us and that makes me happy. almost as happy as december festivities if you can imagine that. The pool is quickly becoming our activity of choice and ice cold otter pops have been our favorite treat. Us gal's wrists are lined with bright colored thread and countless beach trips will be in our near future. we also look forward to sidewalk chalk, bubbles, 4th of july, movies in the grass, picnics, BBQs, and all things summer. Here's to another great summer ahead. cheers.

A Day for Dads.

This Father's day, we made a little video for my dear ol' dad.

adjusting.

life with two littles is a bit less chaotic now that we are adjusting to everything. we spend a lot more time at home, and we watch a bit more tv than ever before, but we will get back out and about with time. Hudson is very mild tempered and Emmy has been ridiculously patient and understanding, both of which have been saving graces. i am obsessed with these two little humans. i wasn't sure i was going to like this little blue bundle as much as i like my precious pink one, terrible, i know...just didn't seem possible...but low and behold what they say about loving all of your kids sure is as true as can be. who knew! what a wonderful thing this motherhood business is.