Our Boys

"The spirit is there in every boy; it has to be discovered and brought to light."

Jakey is really getting around these days. He "army" crawls everywhere and picks up everything along the way. I am constantly vacuuming and grabbing toys and paper off the floor. He sits up and plays with his toys. He is a very happy little boy. Always smiling and waving to people. I love when we're out in public and someone says "hi" to him. He'll be sitting there sucking his 2 fingers and when someone says "hi" he'll take his fingers out, smile, and wave - a big wave! His hand open and his arm swaying back and forth. Very cute. I think it kind of surprises people - makes them smile and laugh.
My parents were here to visit and to help us celebrate our 3rd son's First Communion. Noah looked very handsome and proud in his shirt and tie. We had a nice little get together with family at our home after the blessed event. Now Noah just has to remember to receive the Body of Christ at mass. He keeps forgetting to put his hands out - he keeps them folded and he gets a blessing then I need to whisper that he receives.
Brandon our oldest has gone to Tourettes Camp the last 2 summers. This year we are selling chocolate bars to raise money to send him. Chocolates sell very fast around here. I sold 90+ the first day. I'm now waiting for another shipment so we can try to raise more money. If we sell enough we might send our 2nd son to camp too. He used to have an eye tic, but it went away. Now, he is showing signs of OCD. We talked to his doctor about it. Right now it's pretty mild. Ethan just comes to me and we talk about it. OCD can be part of TS - so can ADD.
ADD is something Noah shows signs of. He also has some tics that come and go. Right now his tic is to "slap" himself when he does something "wrong" or just makes a mistake. He told his Neurologist that when he is sent to his room for a time out, he has to slap himself hard. That breaks my heart. His doctor has diagnosed him with a tic disorder. Tom and I are pretty sure he has / will have TS like Brandon. At least Noah has the best role model for having TS in Brandon. Brandon is very positive and doesn't let it stop him from doing anything. He likes to explain it to people and even says he is happy he has it.
Brandon is also raising money to go on our Church's Youth Group Mission Trip this summer. He'll be going to Michigan to help people who need it. I don't know how I'm going to handle Brandon being gone for 2 weeks, but I think it is going to be a great experience for him.
Today Ethan went to school dressed like Elvis. They are doing a Wax Museum at his school later this week and today he had to give a speech as the person he picked. Sarah (2 yrs old) asked Ethan why he looked so cute today :o) I blowed dried his hair with gel. I wonder if he'll want to continue styling his hair this way. On Friday he'll be going to the Jr. High School to have lunch. He is excited to go to Jr. High next year. I think Brandon is excited to go to High School. I'm a little sad that they won't be in the same school. They will be in a few years when they're a Freshman and Senior. That should be fun / interesting.