We won the Crane Game!!!

We all went to breakfast as a family this morning, and Jason wanted Daddy to play "the Crane Game" outside the restaurant. For anyone who doesn't know what I am talking about this "game", featured in such classic movies as Toy Story, is a box full of stuffed animals/toys, there is a crane that you manuever over a desired toy, press a button, the crane decends and if you are lucky "captures" the toy in it's claw and delivers it to the player. Basically, it is a big waste of money because the claw can never quite grasp the toy... well, today to the delight of on-lookers, Daddy was able to capture the bird in the picture at left for Jason!!! Jason was ecstatic and has since named the bird "Boppy" and only left Bobby long enough this evening to take a bath. Very entertaining!!

Trans Fat Information

Food Thought of the Week

A lot of attention has been brought to Trans Fats recently, but I wanted to include it in the Food Thought of the Week because while people are aware of Trans Fats, I believe the food labeling is misleading.

Trans Fats are an unfortunate man-made invention and can be found in a lot of foods that we bring into our house as parents (crackers, sandwich bread, frozen baked french fries, etc.) Trans Fats are used by food manufacturers to increase the shelf life of many items. As of Jan 1, 2007 food manufactures are required to print the grams of trans fat on the nutrition label of their products. While this was a good attempt by the FDA to help inform the public, unfortunately the Nutrition Label doesn't tell the entire story.

If the level of trans fat in 1 serving of an item is less than .5 grams, they can publish the item as 0 grams of Trans Fat. As many of us realize by now manufacturers can change the serving size to fall below .5 grams of Trans Fat, and we (or our kids) are eating what we may consider a portion are actually eating 2-3 servings and getting almost 2 grams of trans fat when we thought we were not getting any! This is especially shocking when ideally we shouldn't consume ANY grams of Trans Fat as they (unlike other good fats) are not necessary or beneficial to our health. A good example using Girl Scout cookies is available on TrainRight.com.

So how do I really know if the food contains trans fat?

The secret is to look in the ingredient label. If you see "partially-hydrogenated" or "hydrogenated" oil of any kind PUT IT BACK ON THE SHELF!

Why should I be concerned? What is so bad about Trans Fats?

Trans fat wreaks havoc on the body and has been linked to heart disease, high cholesterol, liver disease and obesity! I won't rewrite everything here because it is available on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans_fat#Health_risks).

Information on Trans Fat is also available at WebMD, MedicineKnowledge.net and Mayo Clinic.

Trader Joe's - Customer in Training

Happy Fourth of July everyone!!

This is Jason in his American Flag t-shirt, shopping for cookout items at Trader Joes! This is his first time with the Trader Joe's mini cart... he was doing fairly well until he ran into mommy in the freezer section and daddy took the cart away :-(

We ran into Kate and Mike with Ella at the Trader Joe's, it's such a small world sometimes! They were not able to make our last minute party due to prior commitments so it was nice to see them to say hello! After Jason's nap we welcomed friends to the house for dinner and drinks. Jason was he usual entertaining self, singing at the dinner table and repeating most of what he heard! Thanks to Michelle, Eddie, Kim, Patrick and younger Patrick for making the trip up north! :-)

Jason goes potty at school!

Jason has been going potty when we sit him on the potty at home for a couple of weeks, but we hit a big milestone at school today with a pee-pee on the potty! It's it a little crazy how excited we get about this stuff??? Jason received the following card from his teachers for his big accomplishment!

Greek Yogurt

Several months ago my sister-in-law suggested that I try Greek Yogurt. I am so glad we did! Jason loves the creamy texture and since it is thicker than your "typical" yogurt it is easier for him to eat (i.e. keep on the spoon). Jason likes the plain Greek yogurt with honey drizzled on top. Sometimes we put muslix and raisins in there too!

On it's own Greek yogurt is lower in carbohydrates and higher in protein than similar "typical" yogurt. When compared against a "fruit" yogurt the calorie difference is significant and for those folks worried about glycemic index sweetening the plain yogurt with low glycemic sweentener such as Agave Necter will really make a difference. The yogurt tastes just as sweet and is just as much of a treat with a lower glycemic index and less calories to boot!

Some numbers:

	FAGE 2% Plain Yogurt	Dannon 2% Plain Yogurt
Fat	4.5g	4g
Saturated Fat	3g	2g
Calories	150	154
Carbohydrates	9g	17g
Protein	19g	13g

There are some decisions to make based on the number above (i.e. if the extra g of saturated fat has you worried), but all in all if your kid is more likely to eat this yogurt because of the creamier texture, I think that's all you need to know!

Typically you will find FAGE brand greek yogurt (our personal favorite) in your grocery store, it is available for us here at Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe's. The FAGE brand isn't stamped organic but is made from the milk of naturally/no bovine antibiotics fed cows. More information is available from their website: http://fageusa.com/products.html

Styling Olivia's "Hair"

It was a rainy day here in Atlanta, which must be the reason Jason decided to brush Olivia today. He picked up a hairbrush, turned to me and said "Olivia needs a pony tail!". Below is hopefully a slideshow of the action. If it isn't working, please let me know and I will just post regular pictures.



To see the captions, click on the little "comment" icon at the bottom of the slideshow window.

Double Hilll

Our most recent train track masterpiece! Note the "double hill" in the back.

Ella's B-day party!

Jason says:

"I went to my friend Ella's birthday party today! We ran around on a mat and sang songs, then I got to jump up and down on a bouncy thing! After that I walked across bridges and beams and jumped into tickle pits!"

We had a ton of fun at Ella's birthday party, it was at the Little Gym in Roswell and Jason really worked himself out climbing and jumping, etc. He attacked his piece of cake! Kate (ella's mom) posted pictures on her website. Thank you for inviting us!

Jason's First Duathlon

Jason outlined the course (loops around downstairs) and determined a "transition area" in the house today. Here are some photos of the "race"!

Jason takes the corner with a look of determination!

Through the family room and into bike finish...

Quick Transition to the run...


Last corner!


Showing determination at the Finish Line!

Jason's Pink Eye

So Jason is dealing with his first case of pink eye! Alex and I both had a big project due without an extend-able deadline, so with Jason out of school for most of the week, things became a little challenging! I noticed Jason's eye was a little gunky on Wednesday night and I mentioned to Alex that he might have pink eye and we shouldn't count on school tomorrow... Woke up Thursday am with his little eye swollen and gunky. Confirmed with the dr that is was pink eye, so we started the anti-biotic drops and he's already looking much better. I wanted to get pictures today, but it looks so much better you can hardly tell. And of course, with Jason being Jason he looks more like he is posing for an ad, than showing off his pink eye!



So I took a closer picture:

MKZ in the house!

Jason's friend McKenzie made the trek up to us with her mommy Andrea on Monday. Unfortuantely, we don't have photos of the occasion, we were having too much fun. Jason and MKZ played trains for awhile, Jason was "showing off". Then the kids piled in the jogging strollers and we walked to the duck pond/lake about .5 mile away and played with the ducks. They kids had a blast! MKZ wanted to play with the ducks, but they kept running away! silly ducks! Came home, had lunch and the kids were ready to crash! Thanks for driving all the way up here!

Good night with Daddy

Jason is getting so big I decided to get another "reading with daddy" photo. Here is the comparison:

Today




July 1, 2006 (about 1 year ago)

Jason Dresses "like a rock star"

Jason's theme at school today was "Dress like a Rock Star". He wouldn't let me put on the sunglasses, but I think we got it! In case you are wondering his t-shirt says "Ladies Man."

A Nasty Virus

Congratulations to our entire family, we made it through the latest virus! Just when you think you get the hang of the cold thing and figuring out what is wrong a new wrinkle comes in just to throw you for a loop. Well, the good news was that Jason didn't have strep throat... the bad news, we can't do anything for it but let it run it's course! Fun! Jason's mom has named this virus the crabby virus, because that was about the worst of it, a crabby Jason for many, many days. We seem to be coming out the other side of it now, just a little worse for the wear!

2 Years Old!

We celebrated Jason's b-day with family! He was most excited about his new train table and the huge Thomas the Tank Engine balloon. Thank you to everyone for making it such a great birthday!

Halloween 2006

Dr. McDreamy in the house! With a nod to his recent endeavors Jason was a surgeon for Halloween this year! He had a great time walking from house to house. He even managed a couple of "Trick or Treat"s!

Drainage Tube Removed

Today was a big day, the doctor removed Jason's drainage tube! We are so thankful that he is doing well. We cannot say enough wonderful things about Children's Hospital at Scottish Rite! The entire staff, everyone we dealt with from admissions, testing, nurses, doctors were top notch and very focused on the child's comfort and care. Jason's dr, Dr. Gower, was absolutely amazing and we are grateful to have been lucky enough to have her as Jason's surgeon. As you can see in the photo below, Jason is doing well and happy to have his drainage tube out!

Surgery Day

Jason did wonderfully on surgery day. We all woke up early and headed down to the hospital. He was getting another cold (most likely do to the constantly infected cycst) and it had gotten into his lungs again. They were worried about his cough when we went in for the pre-op stuff. His Oxygen saturation was low (under 96%) and they were thinking we would have to reschedule the surgery. Jason had a breathing treatment which improved his oxgen levels right away. We talk to the anethesiologist about our options. After some discussion it was decided to go in an remove the cyst because while this was technically an "elective" surgery, it really wasn't.

Once the surgery was a "go" they put Jason on some "funny" medicine to help his anxiety. It was simultaneously disturbing and funny to see my almost two year old son "drunk". Everything made him laugh which made it a bit easier to hand him to the scrub nurse.

Alex and I sat nervously in the waiting room for what seemed like hours, but was only 45 min before we got a call from the scrub nurse with an update on the surgery. 45 min later, the doctor came out and told us that everything went fine. whew! Apparently, the cyst had attached itself to Jason's skin, so she had to remove, a large section of his skin, part of the hyoid bone and part of his tounge muscle. This was inline with everything they had prepared us for and everything that I had read online. We were realived but anxious to see Jason.

They showed us to his post-op room and we waited... then I heard his little cry and I was instantly in "lioness mode". It was tough seeing him, he was still groggy and in pain and obviously scared. He was still connected to his IV and had a drainage tube attached to his chest from this incision. We just sat there with him for hours, he slept for a very long time. The pain medicine was making him groggy so he wasn't able to eat or drink (the key ingrediant to getting the IV removed). Around midnight, I finally was able to mentally let go of him enough to put him in the hospital crib to sleep.

The next morning a nurse suggested giving only a half dose of the pain medication to keep him awake but dull the pain enough for him to eat. This worked wonders and to our immense reflief Jason was eating and drinking with a couple of hours. Amazingly, once he was able to eat, he was ready to get up and walk around. About 24 hours post-op he was walking around the hospital in his little pediatrict hospital gown. We were able to put him in a wagon and pull him through the hospital and out to the garden. At this point his was talking and pointing things out, we were so relived his speech had not been impacted!


There were some complications with his drainage tube, so we spent one more night in the hospital, but we were able to go home the day after that. Now we are back home and honestly the only way we know he had surgery is the bandage on his neck!


Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers!

Thyroglossal Duct Cyst

Jason was diagnosed with a Thyroglossal Duct Cyst last week. This sounds like a bigger deal than it really is. It looks like a rather large lump in the front center of his neck and is most easily seen when he tips his head back. According to the doctors is just tissue that should have "gone away" after his thyroid moved into place as Jason grew in the womb, but in his case he decided to keep it there so it could fill up with fluid and scare his mother to death at 21 months old! :-)

The bad news is that the cyst will need to be surgically removed, so the little man will be in hospital overnight.

The good news is that according to several people this is "common", "surgery 101", and my personal favorite "not an interesting case". :-) Also on the good side, Jason isn't bothered by it at all and he is feeling great.

We have an ultrasound scheduled for next week to ensure that it is a cyst and that it isn't his thyroid (if it is his thyroid there is a different path to take). After that, we have his surgery currently scheduled for October 4th at Scottish-Rite.

We will keep you all posted!

What is he learning at school?!?!

Do I have a snake around my neck?

It was PetLand day at school today! Jason was also kissing puppies, but the snake around his next was probably the highlight. We have a daredevil on our hands... it's official.

Jason weighs in with: That was cool!