Mom To the Rescue and Michael Bublé Concert

We bought Michael Bublé concert tickets a few months ago and about a month before the concert we asked Theo's babysitter if she could watch him. Sadly, she had plans in St. Louis and couldn't change them. I was a little bummed out, but Michael Bublé is young and I'm sure he will be touring again. I put the tickets on StubHub to sell them, but then my mom called and said she would fly up and watch Theo for us! Airline tickets were cheap, so we flew her in for the weekend! Mom to the Rescue!

[Of course, the weekend my mom visits is the HOTTEST so far this season!]

Josh was able to "get off work early" (he wasn't physically at work, but he was on his phone most of the time) on Saturday, so we headed to the Naperville Riverwalk to try Cookie Dough Creations. I guess the newest dessert fad is raw cookie dough, and I am here for it!

You can get ice cream, cookie dough, or both. I got Moose Tracks ice cream with chocolate chip cookie dough on top. It was delicious! I think next time I will just get two different types of cookie dough! YUM!

We then drove to Michael's so I could get a few things for Theo's Harry Potter birthday party! I'm not very creative, but I think it's all going to come together nicely!

[UGH! 100 degrees + humidity = "feels like" 116 degrees!]

After our adventure to Michaels, we went to Tensuke Market and Food Court. I follow a couple of food bloggers and one of them said this was the best sushi in the Chicago area. 

I think we were both hesitant to eat sushi in the back of a fish market (instead of a fancy restaurant), but it was SO GOOD! The fish is FRESH (apparently it is flown in daily) and they give you a lot of it. The rolls are also very reasonably priced and they come with soup and a side. YUM! I wish Tensuke Market was closer, but if you are ever near the O'Hare Airport and are craving sushi then you know where to go!

We still had a couple of hours before the concert started so we went to the Fashion Outlets of Chicago. The stores were a little too fancy for us, but we enjoyed walking around the mall anyways. 

We then ran to the gas station to get a couple of 5-Hour Energy drinks and then headed to the Allstate Arena.

[Our seats - front row of the lower bowl]

[MICHAEL BUBLÉ]

WOW! I've been to a lot of concerts where the singer doesn't sound like their CDs, but this was not one of them! Michael Bublé has an amazing voice and he is such a great entertainer. The concert was called "A Night With Michael Bublé" and that's exactly what it was! He was so personable and loved to joke around with the audience. I feel like he's my new best friend!

Michael asked the audience if anyone wanted to sing with him and his guy yelled out, so Michael went over to him and they sang "Sweet Home Chicago" together! The crowd went WILD!

Towards the end of the night Michael asked his band if any of them wanted to sing. One of his trumpet players came down and sang (and danced) an amazing song while Michael Bublé sang (and danced) with his backup singers. It was so FUN!

During the last few songs, some of the band came out to the edge of the stage and they started a crazy huge dance party. Everyone was on their feet and dancing. The energy was high and you could tell they love to entertain!

VIDEO:

[Theo LOVES going on walks with Grandma!]

[My mom was still in town when Theo's OT, Glady, came by for her weekly visit. Since my mom is going to be watching Theo for a week while I am on the East Coast for a GIRLS TRIP, I figured it would be good for her to meet Theo's therapist.]

Thanks mom for flying out and spending a few days with us! Josh and I haven't been on too many dates since Theo was born, so we GREATLY appreciate you babysitting!

Theo's 23 Months Old

It’s been quite a busy month for us. Theo is 23 months old, so it’s time for an update!

My parents came out to visit and watch Theo, so Josh and I could go see Paul McCartney in concert (see previous post). It was probably the best rock concert I’ve ever been to! 

While my parents were in town, Theo and I went to the dentist. The poor kid has EIGHT teeth coming in at the same time (including four molars). 

Theo continues to tolerate his G Tube feeds well. So well, in fact, he’s over 30 lbs and is 35.5 inches long! I can’t believe he’s in the 85th percentile for weight when he was in the 5th percentile last November! Theo also has the “Compleat Glow,” which happens when you eat a lot of Compleat (his G Tube food) and your skin turns yellow thanks to the sweet potatoes and squash! 

DIET numbers from February until now:

February:

21st weight for age

89th length for age

4th weight for length

June:

85th weight for age

91st length for age 

68th weight for length 

Theo is continuing to get stronger and is tolerating his stander and HeadPod for longer periods of time. He is also sitting up (in my lap) and is allowing people to touch his hands. He still has therapy almost daily, but he seems to enjoy (tolerate?!) those sessions a lot better.

[How big is Theo?]

[SOOO BIG!]

For Father’s Day, we Theo got Josh an antenna for his car and a cute Love Pop card.

[Happy Father's Day to all the great dads!]

After opening his presents, Josh worked on decorating Theo's Star Wars room. We just need a few more things and I think we’ll be done.

[Theo is having a hard time figuring out when to sleep. He will whine and act tired so I put him in his bed, but then he will just lay in there and laugh. Then when I bring him back out to the family room to play he falls asleep on the floor. Ugh.]

[Josh and I went out and got sushi and then to Crusade to get this delicious shake! It was a great date night!]

[Working in the stander at home]

[Looking to the right]

[Laying on his right side at PT]

[Working on his prunes]

I was contacted by a doctor from Yale who is studying Vein of Galen malformations and he asked if we would participate in a study. OF COURSE! Josh, Theo, and I all submitted our cheek-swabs and hopefully the doctors at Yale will find out what’s causing this horrible condition. 

[Happy Canada Day!]

[We started feeing Theo with syringes instead of using the pump. Bye-bye pump bags!]

Theo and I visited the hospital in Peoria just once this month, so he could get an ABR (auditory brainstem response test). This will tells us how the cochlea and the brain pathways for hearing are working. Since Theo’s first embolization on his aneurysm, he won’t roll onto his right side or put his right ear down. No one knows why. An ENT suggested getting his hearing tested. I’m sure that’s not the problem, but why not check? Of course, in the two weeks leading up to the test Theo started rolling to his right side and is getting better at putting his right ear to the ground. He’s still not happy about it but he doesn’t scream and cry like he use to. 

Theo and I went to Peoria the night before the test so we could stay at a hotel. I was supposed to keep Theo awake as much as I could so he would sleep during the test.

[I put Theo on a mattress on the floor and he slept pretty well.]

[I came prepared with my headphones. Theo goes to bed a littler earlier than I do.]

[Breakfast!]

The audiologist ran the test and noticed that Theo has very mild hearing loss in his right ear. So, she did another test to check his eardrum. His eardrum wasn’t responding like it was supposed to, so she concluded that he has fluid behind his right eardrum. She doesn’t think it’s infected though since Theo doesn’t have a fever. This could explain why it’s painful or uncomfortable to roll onto his right ear. So we are going to talk to a Pediatric ENT and they’ll either drain the fluid or prescribe medication to do that.

[I bought these cute beanbag chairs for Theo's room online. I had no idea they were this big!]

Theo still isn’t sleeping well, so I contacted his Neurologist and asked if we could wean Theo off of his second anti-seizure medication, Keppra. He said that was fine and we finished the wean a few days ago. Only time will tell how this affects Theo.

[Happy 4th of July!]

VIDEO:

I can’t believe my sweet boy will be TWO next month! He’s growing up too fast!

As always, Josh continues to work hard so he can provide for our family. Even though he works a lot he does enjoy it!