Pre-Surgery Meal

At the end of January, we had an appointment with an ENT to discuss Andrew's snoring, which sometimes was unrhythmic (apparently, it's not too much of a concern if it's only rhythmic). After telling Dr. Raynor all about Andrew, she thought Andrew might suffer from an enlarged adenoids. We had some x-rays done, which confirmed her diagnosis. She said Andrew's adenoids were rather larger and recommended Andrew have surgery to have them removed.

At first, just the adenoidectomy was recommended. But after a hearing test, Dr. Raynor also suggested the ear tubes be put in because there was fluid in Andrew's right ear and the number of ear infections Drew has had over the last year.

So after much deliberation and even more deliberation, on the advice of Dr. Raynor, and after a second opinion of a family friend who is also an ENT, we have scheduled Andrew for an adenoidectomy and myringotomy for tomorrow morning.

This was a really hard decision for us. We hate the thought of putting Andrew through this especially having to put him under anesthesia. To put it mildly, I am totally scared. But at the end of it all, we know that it is best for Andrew and will hopefully the good will outweigh the bad. We keep thinking that if Andrew isn't sleeping well, then he is not getting the rest he needs to grow and develop. For example, the lack of sleep could be affecting his weight gain and development. Moreover, the hearing impairment could be affecting his speech development.

For his pre-surgery meal, we wanted something that we knew Andrew would eat well so he would be full because he wouldn't be eating for a while after this. So, we decided on dim sum. Ngoai, Papa, and Ba Co came up today to hang with us and came to go to the restaurant with us. We all had a nice time together; and Andrew was true to form. He ate very well. Whew! Good luck to us tomorrow! We will need it!!

I love you, sweetie!

Korean Town

Tonight, we went to dinner with Ed and Monica at a Korean BBQ restaurant in the Korean part of Houston. Ed showed us some things about Korean cuisine that we didn't know, but were so happy to learn! The food and the company was great! Andrew was all over the place trying to pour soy sauce (it was in a teapot after all) and water. But he ate great--he scarfed nine pork dumplings--the fillings only, but still, that's a lot!

After our meal, we headed to H Mart to pick up a few items that Ed was kind enough to help me with. He got some delicious oranges, which Andrew ate almost one by himself. Ed also showed us this ice cream, which was so yummy! Andrew and Mommy are totally hooked!!

Ed, thanks so much for everything tonight! We had such a blast and are so appreciative of all that you have enlightened us with!

Speech Delay

Yesterday, we had our appointment with ECI, which stands for the Early Childhood Intervention Program, which is a state agency that helps children with disabilities and developmental delays. The speech therapist from TCH suggested we contact them to determine whether Andrew might be eligible for their program. If he was, then they would provide speech therapy at a much lower cost than private sessions with speech therapy facilities.

They evaluated Andrew's speech and assessed that Andrew has a three-month delay, which unfortunately does not meet their six-month standard for eligibility. However, they said they would come back later in the future and conduct another speech assessment to see if Andrew qualified at that time.

One reassuring thing is that they also assessed Andrew's cognitive/comprehension at almost a year ahead of his age. Crazy!? We have always known he's a smart boy! But I have to say that the score was skewed because he got major points for knowing where his chin and eye brows are and for being able to follow a three step command that was unrelated (such as put so and so in the trash, get so and so from the fridge, and go read a book versus go get your shoes, sit down, and put your shoes on). But seriously, we have always known that Andrew's knowledge and understanding of things was pretty good. That's one of the reasons we are so worried that his speech isn't nearly as progressed seeing how he can't express himself fully.

Since Andrew isn't eligible for their services, James and I are going to look into privatized therapy hoping that our insurance will cover some of the expenses. We know that a three-month delay isn't huge, but we just want to get him any help we can give him in hopes of accelerating his talking. We really would like Andrew to say more complex words and sentences.

Here is a video of Andrew saying a few additions to his vocabulary (not too shabby of talking, but it's just not where we know it could be) along with some answers to some hard-nosed questions (i just like to see who he says). But it's funny (and a little sad for me) because he never answers Mama to either of the two questions. it's always someone else...Daddy, Nonna, Papa, and Ngoai are the typical responses.

Art Time

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Andrew has been totally into art time--coloring, drawing, and stickers. He mainly colors in coloring books and pages that I print from the internet (love it). But we will also give him blank paper and let him put stickers on it and color it for a bit. Moreover, about 90% of the time, he will ask us to draw vehicles, especially trains and buses, on his papers too!

He normally uses his right hand, but sometimes, he does use his left. Maybe there is hope for a southpaw, but I doubt it.

Happy 23rd Month Birthday

Well, one more month until the big 0-2!! Andrew is still a happy little boy that can be such a handful, but still the center of our universe! But here is an update as to what our little guy has been up to this past month (of what I can remember).

First off, in terms of playing, there is no doubt that Andrew loves trains! He plays with them everyday. He talks about them everyday. It's crazy! He plays with his Thomas trains the most, but we have gotten him a few of the Geo Trax toys and he loves them a lot too! He is hilarious about what order he wants the trains in and even more hilarious how he gets down low to put them at his eye level to watch them move along the track. Andrew knows most of the names of his Thomas trains and we have even taught him who gave him some of his trains.

Andrew has also mastered pushing himself along on his ride-on toy. He can actually get some good speed, which scares Mommy! And he hasn't quite mastered steering and turning so that doesn't bode well! We probably need to get him a helmet soon. ;)

Drew has always loved bathtime and still does. But now most of the time he spends there involves pouring water in and out of cups! He's decent about getting them in the cup without too much spilling (unless it's on purpose). So much so, we have even let him pour water when we are cooking too. After an unpleasant experience with the jets in our tub, Andrew has been also taking showers. He loves to pretend to cook things like doughnuts, pizza, and cake while he's in there. Such a nut!

Also, Andrew is getting so into coloring and stickers. He loves putting stickers not only on the pages, but also his body especially his cheeks and clothes. But Drew loves to peel them off too! And then, Mommy ends up finding stickers on the floor, toys, and furniture.

A.J.'s new favorite cartoon is Dora the Explorer. He loves Dora and Boots, but nothing compared to how much he loves Swiper. He cracks up when Swiper says "Oh Man!" He doesn't watch Super Why! or Sesame Street. And ever since our trip to California where Uncle Duc introduced him to it, Andrew also likes to watch Mickey Mouse Choo Choo Express. He doesn't watch as many Thomas videos as much as he used to, but when he does, he likes to watch the shows we recorded from TV versus his videos.

Daddy is already teaching Andrew the value of saving. Andrew loves to put coins in his two piggy banks. But since he also loves to throw coins in water fountains, it's a tough choice for him to decide if he wants to save his money or throw it away. That's a decision that he will be faced with throughout his life! Ha ha! But it's about 50-50 so far.

Another thing Andrew loves to do lately is help in kitchen and laundry. As I mentioned earlier, he loves to pour water or even milk into whatever we are making like oatmeal and waffles, but he so loves to stir. And he even helps load the washer and unload the dryer. Daddy is really good about making it fun for him to help. Andrew even puts his clothes in the hamper before bathtime. It's so cute! I just hope it carries on when Andrew is older!! But for now, he is our good little helper!

As for eating, Andrew loves noodles and pizza. The boy could eat mac and cheese every day I think! He still likes to eat noodles with alfredo or spaghetti sauce too (takes after his mommy!). There are days when he won't eat any fruits or vegetables (boo) and it seems like all he eats is carbs!! But we try to find ways to get him to eat it. Andrew is big into smoothies thankfully! And when he is eating something well (like noodles), we will sneak some pieces of meat or veggies into the bite. Sometimes, he spits it out, but sometimes, he doesn't.

My Andrew also has a sweet tooth just like me. He loves ice cream, but most of all, he loves candy. He still loves M&Ms, but now, he is totally digging on lollipops. Andrew knows that when we go to the pediatrician's office, he gets lollipops after our examination. He's good about only licking it, but there has been the occasion where he will try to bite it!

And since Vegas, Andrew has been more persistent about climbing out of his crib and over our gate. We have taken his crib mattress out and put it on the floor for now until we figure out what we want to do next. Andrew's pretty good about sleeping on it, but it seems that he sleeps more on the floor next to the mattress or half on and half off. He will walk into our room when he wakes up during the night. Sometimes, if Mommy is up to it, I will take him back to his room and try to get him to go back to sleep there. But if it's later in the night or if Mommy doesn't have the energy, we will just let him sleep in our bed. As for the gate, he will try to climb over every now and then, but not too often. Normally, he's okay with the barrier, but it's only when he's adamant about getting out will he climb over it. He has also learned how to move it and squeeze through it too. I guess it's time for more changes in terms of baby proofing!

Andrew now loves to say no. He will say no just to say no even when he doesn't mean it. There is a reason I tried not to teach him that word! We try to get him to wag the finger and say no thank you, which he does maybe 50% of the time. The rest of his speech is still progressing slow. We are still looking into speech therapy for him. He is getting better about trying to say more words and different sounds. And we do get more two word combinations like "Mama please" and "more" whatever. But the most I probably hear is "No, Mama." Figures!

Andrew started by sleeping with all his stuffed animals, but now, it has grown to sleeping with blankets. He has like four blankets that he likes to sleep with. It has totally gotten out of hand. I think Mommy will have to instill the same technique she used with the stuffed animals. They take a long time to get back from being washed.

My favorite picture of our 23 month old from Liya's party. Such a goof, but he's our goof!

Liya's 2nd Birthday Party

This morning, Andrew and I attended Liya's 2nd birthday party. We know Liya and her mom, Sabrina, from Gymboree. And Liya is always just too cute and too sweet (her mom too). Daddy stayed behind to get some studying in. Too bad for him because he missed a great party!! Sabrina had ordered a bouncer, train, and two rides (car and horse) like they have at Toys R Us or the grocery store where you can pay $0.50 to ride. And then, there was such a beautiful cake!! Amazing and delicious.

Anyways, Andrew at first didn't want to ride the train or get in the moonwalk. Don't ask me why not! He was content just watching everyone else partake. But finally, he came around and we rode the train and got in the bouncer. And after all the fuss he put up to get in the moonwalk, he had a blast. He was laughing and smiling having a ball! And then he put up a huge stink when I said we had to get out! Punk!!

It was a great party; and we had a wonderful time! Happy Birthday, Liya! Thanks for sharing your special day with us!

**Note: The birthday girl is the one in the last picture on the left. I know it's hard to see her when she was "cutting" the cake.

Evan and the Aquarium

Today, we spent the morning/early afternoon with Uncle Steven, Aunt Belinda, and Evan at the Aquarium. We had such a fun time! The boys favorite parts of the day were riding the shark train (they wanted to ride it more than once) and the aquarium exhibits inside especially the stingrays and white tigers. Unfortunately, Andrew still isn't willing to ride on the carousel on an animal {wimp}. But my boy did brave the ferris wheel for the very first time. Andrew wasn't too keen on the idea at first. I really thought he was going to cry and scream, but he settled after the wheel started going and did great. He liked looking out at the cars and trucks on the road. I was so afraid he was going to try to jump out of the carriage...I told Daddy to stay close and keep a hand on him too! Later, we had a nice little lunch where we had a little celebration for Evan's 3rd birthday!! And the boys had a little too much fun with the blue icing on the cupcakes.

Happy Birthday, Evan! It was great hanging out with you guys! We are going to miss you being so close to us. Thanks for being such great friends. We love you all!

Josh's House

Today, we were invited over to Josh's house for a play date. I like to go there for a few reasons. One is so that Anh doesn't always have to drive into the city, such as meeting us at the museum which is normally our play date place. And two, Andrew loves that Josh has so many trains just like him. Third, Andrew also loves LOVES Josh's play kitchen--sometimes choosing to play pretend cooking over trains! I swear we probably need to just get him one already! And fourth, it makes it easier for Thuy to come hang with us.

I fall more and more in love with Josh every time I see him. He is such a cute and good kid! And he totally makes me laugh by the things he says and does. I love that him and Andrew are getting to be such good buddies. And today, it was extra special cute when Josh and Andrew were ganging up...I mean, playing with her and climbing all over her.

Thanks, Anh, Josh, and Thuy for a great time!

Max's House

We went over to Max's house for a long awaited play date. Linda and I hadn't been able to get the boys together in a while. And we really wanted to hang out especially before Max's little brother's arrival, which could be any day now!

Andrew was so excited to see Max!!! We hung out in Max's playroom and even walked to a nearby park to enjoy the beautiful weather. The boys had fun in the sandbox and Max even found some cars that must have been accidentally left behind. One of the best moments was when Max was swinging. Andrew was cracking up laughing for some reason thinking it was the funniest thing ever. I don't know why my son doesn't like the swing!!

Afterwards, it was lunchtime so we decided to go to Skeeters since it is so kid friendly. The boys did well eating and behaving. They normally do pretty well together. It's so cute! I love how they are really starting to play and interact with each other as they are getting older. And Andrew just adores Max as do I!

It was also nice to catch up with Linda especially talking about the new little baby coming soon! I can't wait to meet him!

Emily's 2nd Birthday Party

This afternoon, we attended Miss Emily's 2nd birthday party--our favorite little neighbor! She is just so adorable! The theme of the party was milk and cookies, which was too cute. And can I just say, the cookies were so delicious. Emily's mommy, Aimee, did a fantastic job of planning the party and baking (and ordering) the cookies!

I didn't take a whole lot of pictures, but I definitely wanted to snap a few of the birthday girl and Andrew. I love the one where he is trying to feed her. Andrew had a good time playing with Emily's toys and eating all those cookies and cake! He played nice with many of the kids and there were no incidents of hitting, so that's another plus!

Happy Birthday, Emily! Thanks for allowing us to share in your special day!

Note: The last picture is of Emily holding the Barney book we got her. I am not a big fan of Barney, but supposedly, Emily is so when I found it at Toys R Us, I had to get it for her. She seemed to like it! Hooray!!

Our Last Day in Sunny California

The partying continued with a sleepover for all the kids...well, the girls, really. Brennan slept with his dad; and Andrew slept with us. Aunt Anh Thu fell sleep in our room too while we were watching a movie!

Andrew had a little rough of a night. He woke up crying, which is unusual for him. And this morning, he couldn't keep anything down (food or drink). But the kids played again this morning inside and out. Andrew even though not feeling well wanted to go outside and play. But he was scared of Jayda's and Jenyne's toy Escalade. But he had fun riding around on other bikes and cars outside though.

For lunch, we were going to a restaurant to meet up with the youngest brother, Y, and his family, including his newborn son, Jaden. James and I were hesitant to go with Andrew feeling so bad, but he seemed to be getting better. Well, it ended up being not that much better. He was so hungry from not eating anything that he scarved the food down. And sure enough, he coughed and threw it up. Duc was nice enough to take us home with a stop at CVS to pick up from meds.

After the rest of the gang finished eating, they came back over to Duc's house including Y and his eldest son, Brandon. But Y's wife, Duyen, and Jaden went back home so Jaden could rest. It was great to hang out with Y getting to catch up. And Brennan was happy to have another boy to play with especially one so close in age to him!

I contemplated not taking our flight home not sure how Andrew was going to fair. I considered staying in LA with my cousins or going to Las Vegas with Anh Thu. And then, we also had to consider Daddy who was due to report back to work on Monday. Well, he hadn't vomited in a few hours and seemed to be doing well so we just figured that we would try to go home and then he could be comfortable in his own familiar surroundings and try to recover. Well, he threw up like four times on the plane and then once more when we landed at Hobby. By the way, the Southwest flight attendant was so understanding and helpful by the way that I wish I got her name to write her a thank you letter. We called the pediatrician's office to have a nurse call us back to see if there was something they could prescribe to help with deter the vomiting. But by the time we made it to our house, the prescription wasn't ready yet and we just wanted Andrew home sleeping. He did okay the rest of the night, but not great. Sucky stomach bug!!

But other than that, we did really have a great trip. We are so thankful to everyone who made it possible. Thanks to Duc and his family for being such great hosts! Thanks to Nhat, Y, and their families for spending time with us. Thanks to Anh Thu and the Armstrongs for making the trip out. It was an awesome time...one that I will never forget!!

Here are a few pictures from today. Most of them taken by my photographer in training, Cara. I am totally bummed because in all the craziness, I didn't bring a camera to the restaurant and didn't get a picture of Jaden. :(

Partying in LA

So, this evening, Nhat and Duc and their families wanted to throw a birthday party for Cara (whose birthday is really next week) since we were all together. We tried to make it a surprise for all the Armstrongs, but there was a breach in confidentiality, but it's ok. It all worked out okay.

First, Nhat and Duc and their wives went above and beyond with dinner ordering and making way too much delicious food! I have to say the food in CA is out of this world!! We had so many different things that were all very yummy!

And of course, all the kids were running amok and playing. I had gotten some small presents for the kids so they played with them for a little while. The big hit of the night was the PS3 and Band Hero, where the girls sang their hearts out. There were definitely a lot of Taylor Swift fans in the crowd!! Emma and Jayda did a duet (or two or three) of "Love Story". And the birthday girl herself belted out "Dirty Little Secret" by the All American Rejects. It's funny how they know all the words just from listening to it on the radio and how much they get into it. We got some rock stars on our hands!

Andrew had fun playing with everyone and everything especially Jayda's and Jenyne's kitchen. Again, it was a complete joy getting to watch all the kids play together and interact. It was just the best time seeing another generation of family spending time together and building relationships.

And one more time, Happy Birthday, Cara! We love you, sweetie! So glad we could celebrate your 11th birthday early with you!

Magic Mountain

Anh Thu and her family were sweet enough to drive up to LA this morning to see us while we were in California--and they could hang with the cousins too. We had talked about if we wanted to go out and do something touristy or just stay at home and have quality family time with everyone. I would have been happy with both, but kind of liked the idea of doing something since we were already there. I had seen that there was a Thomas Town at Magic Mountain and thought that Andrew and Brennan might enjoy that.

So, it was Anh Thu's family--Rick, Anh Thu, Cara, Emma, and Brennan. Then, our family--James, me, and Andrew. Then, Duc's family--Duc, Josie, and Jayda. And lastly, we had one stowaway, Nhat's youngest daughter, Kyana (her sister Kimmie had a full day planned and it wouldn't have been much fun for Kyana to be dragged along so Nhat let her come with us). So, doing the math, we had five adults, one teenager, and six little ones.

When we arrived at the park, I noticed a gentleman holding up his horns, so I stuck up my horns back to him. I then asked him if he went to the game to which he replied no. He informed us that he graduated from UT at Dallas and was bummed about the loss as we all were. He asked if we had been there before, which many of us haven't. He explained how best to manuver around the park and things we should take the little ones too. Anh Thu then joked that there should be some consolation prize for the losers of the Rose Bowl every year...like free admisssion or at least, a free ice cream. The gentleman joked that he wished he could do that, but what he could do for us is provide us with VIP passes enabling us to bypass the lines!! Sure enough, if you looked closely, you could read his nametag...Jay Thomas, Park President. No way!! So we got our wristbands and started off.

First, we came upon the log ride called LogJammer, which many of the kids wanted to ride. Anh Thu and I stayed back with Brennan and Andrew and took them to Bugs Bunny World. We took the boys to drive trucks at Taz's Trucking Co. Then, the rest of the group met us with us and we explored the rest of Bugs Bunny World. First, most of the kids (and Rick and Duc) rode Yosemite Sam's Flight School. Then, we went to the Looney Tunes Lodge, which was like a playhouse with balls everywhere! Next, we rode Foghorn Leghorn's Barn and Railway ride, which was a small fun roller coaster. No one was in line after us so we rode it back to back! It was fun getting to ride it with Brennan! Then, some of the kids rode Sylvester's Pounce and Bounce. At first, Brennan didn't want to ride, but then changed his mind. So, Duc was volunteered to ride on it with him! Ha ha! Then the kids rode some more rides like Pepe Le Pew's Tea Party and .

Then, we decided to head over to Thomas Town so the boys could check it out. Andrew was so giddy and Brennan was too. We immediately rode Thomas--the boys were so happy. After the ride, it filters you to the gift shop with a train table. Andrew and Brennan proceeded to play not even caring about all the other stuff in the store. We bought a few things including a Thomas engineer hat for Andrew. Brennan didn't want one so I bought him Bertie the Bus for his track at home instead. Duc bought the boys matching Thomas t-shirts of which we immediately put them on. So cute!! Brennan and a few of the girls rode Percy the Roller Coaster while Andrew continued to play at the train table.

After we left Thomas Town, we headed for some bigger rides so the adults could partake in some fun. Rick, Josie, James, and I first rode Goliath, which took way longer than we expected due to the ride breaking down while we were on it about to head up the first incline. After about a fifteen minute wait, they fixed the ride, which always makes it more interesting of a ride. Anyhow, the ride was really good. Andrew didn't miss us too much with Brennan, the girls, Anh Thu, and Duc.

We then decided it was easier to split up. The girls wanted to go back to Bugs Bunny World so Anh Thu and Duc took them and the boys back there while Rick, Josie, James and I would ride some of the larger rides. I felt really bad about leaving Andrew and both Daddy and I offered to stay behind. But Duc and Anh Thu assured us it was fine.

So, the big kids headed to Superman the Escape. Decent ride. Then, we tried to ride Josie's favorite, Riddler's Revenge, but it was closed. Along the way, we thought we found a good roller coaster ride for Cara to ride so we headed back to join the group. We got them and headed to Goldrusher, but someone suggested Cara ride the Ninja instead. At that time, Riddler's Revenge was back open so Rick, Josie, and Daddy went to ride it while I stayed with the group. So, we started walking to Ninja (a long grueling uphill walk especially with kids who were getting tired) to find out it was closed!! Boo! So, we headed down to the carousel which was nearby. The girls had fun riding it. Andrew of course wanted to ride in the car and not on one of the horses. By then, the trio finished riding Riddler's Revenge and were headed to the big ride there called X2. I wanted to ride it so I met them at the ride. I am so glad I did. It is probably the best ride I have ever ridden in all my life. I get chills just thinking about it now!

By then, it was late (a lot later than I thought we would last there); and the kids were dog tired! We headed back to Duc's house for even more fun. Most the kids fell asleep on the drive home including Andrew.

I have to say it was really a great day. It was awesome getting the VIP passes, which helped a ton, but my favorite part of the day was watching the kids. It's so great seeing cousins and second cousins play together. They were so happy and excited. You can't help to get caught up in their smiles and laughter.

Thanks everyone for spending the day with us and thanks to Anh Thu and Duc for watching Andrew!! And thanks for taking so many pictures of the little ones.

Again, I am posting some of my favorites from today, but the rest are posted on shutterfly.