What you talkin' bout?

We always hear something different about who Weston looks like. Sometimes it's me, sometimes it's Jeremy and most of the time no one can tell. I'd say he's a pretty good mix of us both. But here he looks like Arnold. As in the "What you talkin 'bout Willis?" Arnold from Different Strokes! His facial expressions crack us up! He has been so funny lately with the things he says and comes up with.

Answered prayers and Nemo

A few weeks ago we had Weston's blood work done to check his IgG levels. I had Nana go with us and I don't think she knew what she was getting into! We had to both hold him down and then they had to stick to him twice. For Weston I think holding him down is worse for him than the actual blood draw. We got the results in and it was well worth it! His IgG levels were in the normal range!! Low normal but we'll take it. We are so thankful, it was definitely an answered prayer! His levels will continue to go up and we will check again in a year just to make sure. What a relief it is to know he no longer has an immune disorder. He quit taking his antibiotic the end of June and has only had a few colds since then. Nothing major and nothing that has required antibiotics. He still takes prevacid for reflux and nasonex for his allergies.

I figured out a good way to get pictures of Weston since he never wants to be still long enough to take pictures. In this case I told him I wanted to take a picture of his big Nemo and if he wanted to sit by Nemo he could. This is the big huge Nemo that Jeremy won and Nemo does all but sleep with Weston! He had just woken up and I love the sweet little sleepy look he has. He got the Pooh Bear slippers from his little girlfriend's birthday party last year and still loves to wear them! We went to my parents house last night for dinner and he said "Go to Nana and Dado's wear pooh slippus (slippers).

Fun weekend

This would be a good story about the fish that got away.

When Sheila, Eric, and the boys came in town we fit a lot of stuff into one weekend. Weston has really missed his cousins and we had a great time with them here.





All the boys are really into pirates right now, so if you don't have a pirate telescope (I guess that's what you would call it) a roll of saran wrap works just as good! Hayden was running around looking through a roll of shelf liner!

Finally in Katy!

Pictures from our first month in Katy.

Summer Pics

A few of things we did this summer. We went swimming, had bubble fights, moved, went to baseball games, and lots of trips to visit Daddy in Houston.

Summer Wrap Up

***WARNING*** Long post!
This summer has gone by so fast and so much has happened. Here is a brief (well not that brief) wrap up and summer pictures. We spent the 4th of July at Eric's parents lake house. Weston and I spent lots of time in Houston to visit Jeremy. Since he lived with my parents it worked out good to see them and him! Weston and I stayed with Sheila for a week before we officially moved to Houston. We had a blast at Hayden's 3rd birthday party and enjoyed spending the week with them. I even got the playgroup bunch to meet me for one last playgroup that Weston and I could be at. We had the 2nd annual Peterson Reunion at Meme's house the last weekend of July.
We met Meme's fiance for the first time and decided he's a pretty good guy and he makes her very happy, which makes us happy! My cousin JJ and his wife drove in from Phoenix so we decided our Houston trek wasn't so bad.
Weston completely quit sucking on his 3 fingers sometime in August which meant many restless nights for all of us. I guess cramming three fingers in his mouth finally proved uncomfortable. I really wondered if it would be a bad thing to get your 2 year old hooked on a paci (we really needed the sleep!) but he wasn't interested. I don't know if I would have gone through with it. . .
We learned 2 year old's don't adapt to change very well and had an interesting and challenging time with Weston.
We lived with Mom and Dad a week and finally got in the new house August 4th! After a few weeks of new construction crazies (to put it mildly) we are really enjoying the new house. There are pools, splash parks, and playgrounds so always something to do. I spent a week brown bagging the walls in Weston's room and am very pleased with how it turned out. I wasn't sure about half way into it and asked Jeremy if I should rip it down and just paint it. He said do what you think you need to do. Not exactly the answer I was looking for. I had everyone from my parents to our builder look at we all decided it's pretty neat looking. Even Jeremy has come around and now he likes it. It was very easy but ridiculously time consuming. Sheila, Eric, Hunter and Hayden came to see us they had to sleep with boxes in their room ( I thought if I left them they might unpack them. . . didn't happen! he he). We went to the Kemah boardwalk, ate at the aquarium , rode the train and Jeremy won the biggest blow up Nemo you have ever seen. We all piled in the Sheila's suburban and it made a tight fit coming back home with the huge Nemo. Weston insisted on holding it and wouldn't let anyone touch it. That was a fun car ride home. We also went to Lupe's Tortilla's with them. Sheila is the one who told us we need to try it out and I think it's now our favorite place. There is a HUGE sandlot out front with lots of toys so the kids can play while you wait for a seat. The food's not bad either! We have now been there the last 3 Friday's! We went to On The Border in Frisco every Friday night so guess we are starting another tradition. Jeremy's Mom and Dad came in last weekend and brought up the pool table. Jeremy helped pay for this pool table while he was in high school and has wanted it since we've been married. That was his only request when we were looking for a house, that it have a game room big enough for his pool table. The Gilliam's graciously paid to have it broken down and put back up and hauled it in a u-haul from Midland to Katy. Gary had an unfortunate accident with the u-haul door and ended up at Katy Urgent Care Center most of Saturday for a tetanus shot and some surgical tape. We went to the pool, the playground, Lupe's, Bolli Brother's and even fit in some games of pool during the weekend. Weston loves to roll the balls on the pool table. He even woke up in the middle of the night and all we hear is "i wanna play balls!"
Weston started preschool for the first time and I think he's is going to enjoy it. The mornings are pretty rough when I drop him off. Usually both of us are in tears. I hope he gets to where the drop off isn't so hard on him. He tells me he likes it and that he wants to go back. I always call about 45 minutes after I drop him off and he is always very happy. When Jeremy asks him about school he says, "I pay outside, I pay basketball, and Mommy come back" At least he's got the important stuff down!
That pretty much wraps up our summer.

Why packing is hard with a two year old!

A lot has happened in the Gilliam household the last month. Jeremy accepted a job offer in Houston, we found a house in Katy, we put this one the market, got a contract after nine days, and Jeremy starts on Monday. We definitely can see the Lord's hand in this and things have really gone very smoothly. We got our house ready to put on the market in four days, that may be more than enough time for most people but for us . . . we didn't sleep much in those four days. We had to clean out all of the closets because I am of the mind frame that if you can't see it don't worry about it. Our realtor asked me if it was possible for one person to wear all of these clothes when he looked in our closet. This was after Jeremy and I spent several hours making in presentable. Thank goodness I married a man that likes to organize because I can't stand it. Give me a broom, a mop, a paint brush, a toilet bowl brush, whatever, just don't make me organize something. So Jeremy did most of the work while I just wandered around in circles not sure of what to do. But by the Grace of God we got it done and a nice couple wants to buy our house! I think the Lord knows me well because I was getting frustrated looking at houses in Katy (even though Mom warned me not to) then we find one we both love and it's currently being constructed. I was already tired of having the house on the market (yes it had only been a week) then we get an offer. We are extremely thankful this has gone so smoothly. I have been pretty upset that Jeremy will leave for Houston before Weston and I can get there and at least now I have a date and it's only a month away! I have a feeling we will get to know highway 45 between Dallas and Houston pretty well by the time July 20 rolls around. We are really looking forward to the new opportunities that wait for us in Katy and are very excited about our new house!!
Back to the picture of Weston - I was clearing clothes out of the closet (have I mentioned our new closet in twice the size of the one we have now? Not sure who is more excited me or Jeremy) and had filled this crate up with clothes that I don't need right now. Jeremy and I sat down for a break and started to watch the Mavericks game. Here comes Weston pulling the now empty crate into the family room and sits in it to watch the game. At this point we just laugh what else can you do?

Mother's Day

I know it's late posting about Mother's Day but we got some cute pictures and I wanted to post them. We had a wedding in Houston over Mother's Day and spent the weekend with Mom and Dad. My parents live across the street from a huge waterfall and Weston loved it! He was constantly asking to go see the waterfall and usually their was someone willing to take him. One because it's really neat to go see and Nana and Dado had fun taking him over there and two because it was a constant "I go see waarer fall, I go see waarer fall, I go see waarer fall. . . again and again
and again. This kid has persistence!
Jeremy went all over Dallas looking for a Mother's Day shirt for Weston to wear. He found this one Gap and it says Rock on Mom, I loved it! I am so thankful to be a mom to Weston and to have such a wonderful Mother. We are very blessed!

A little bit onery, a lot of bit precious

I have tons of pictures to post and lots of stories to tell. Hopefully tonight I can update more. Can't believe it's been a month since my last post! We have been very busy at the Gilliam household!!

Easter at the Ranch

We went to the Ranch for Easter and had a great time! We drove the Mule, swam (well the boys anyway it was freezing!), celebrated my birthday, saw Dad's new land, watched city boys wrangle longhorns, screamed while Eric was on a runaway horse, fished, had Jeremy cook for all of us, had a great Easter lesson, hunted and dyed easter eggs. All in three days! Several memorable moments stand out for me. The first was when Sheila and I went to see the new land with Dad he got for cattle and also hunting. Dad laid out cake for the cows and of course since we were out in the middle of no where I had to go to the bathroom. Dad was on one side of the truck where all the cows were so I went to the other side to (what's a nice way to say squat?). So there I am going to the bathroom and I here something. I turn my head around to see a HUGE black cow coming a little to close. What could I do? I figured he wouldn't come to close and I tried to finish my business. A few seconds later this, let me repeat, HUGE COW was right behind me! I start screaming "SHEILA" not sure what she could do but I couldn't call Dad because my pants were around my ankles. I jumped up pulled up pants and RAN. All the while the cow just stands there chewing some grass. My Dad on the other hand is cracking up!
Another great moment of the weekend was the Sermon my Dad did on the Resurrection of our Savior. Sheila bought resurrection eggs, inside the 12 eggs is a little piece of the Easter story. My Dad let each grandson open an egg and then told what the piece meant. Hunter did a great job of helping Dad tell the story and we can't wait until all the boys can help him.
Mom also made me one of my favorite desserts for my birthday, homemade butterfinger ice cream! I had balloons and even candles in my "cake."
Sheila and I bought Hayden and Weston there own fishing poles but this time they were much more interested throwing rocks in the stock tank. Hunter again beat everyone and caught the most fish not sure what his technique is but it works!





I have more cute pics from the weekend but can't get them to upload right now. I will add more later.

Easter with the Gilliam's

We had an Easter Egg hunt for Parker and Weston the Sunday after Weston's Party. We did it out front and the boys had a good time. Parker is still in that very cute will always smile for the camera stage and Weston . . . not so much. So it's a little difficult to get a picture of him looking at the camera and smiling.
Jeremy, Collin, Ashley, and Preston and I hid the eggs while Granna and Papa kept the boys inside. I bet we had at least 45 eggs for the two little boys! Weston started to pick up on the idea of finding the eggs and putting them in the basket. He learned pretty quick that there was good stuff inside those eggs!

Weston

This picture just makes me laugh!

We were outside riding his bike and stopped to look at the "pitty fower" This was a look that just said "Mom you better take this flower and don't even think about telling me it's a weed!"

Weston was very distressed over that fact that when you run after birds they fly away. This picture is him thinking of a way to "see bird" meaning run full force and try to catch it without the bird flying away. You can almost see the wheels turning in his mind!

This is actually a picture of good problem solving skills. He couldn't ride his bike very well in the grass but he could push it in the grass.

If only it was that easy!

This is after much crying, screaming, whining and frustration. Also him demanding that I not help. Once he got it figured out though he pushed it all the way to the backyard and put it up for me. This is definitely one independent kiddo.

Elmo Party!

Weston's 2nd birthday was Saturday the 8th and he had a great time! Since he loves Elmo so much we had an Elmo party at My Gym. There were 17 of his best friends and we had all the family there. Much like when we took classes at Jungle Gym Weston is not a fan of circle time. Or should I say sitting in Mommy's lap when he wants to be running and jumping in the ball pit. There was fun music playing and it was so cute to watch Weston dancing along with Hayden and several of his friends. Still hard to believe that our baby is two but I think I will be saying that from now until he's grown! I had such a good time planning the party and finding as much Elmo stuff as I could. I even found the cutest little Elmo juice boxes at Sam's.
We celebrated Weston's birthday again at the house and grilled out burgers and did a pinata. I can't express what it means to me to have both sides of the family over and all of my nephews at one time. Everyone gets along and enjoys each other's company and it's so fun! I was such a stress case last week with getting the new floors in, babysitting baby Hunter, running after a two year old and planning the party that Saturday night was just what I needed. I have terrible time management skills and am a huge procrastinator that I really should learn my lesson from this. Guess we'll see . . .
Here are some pics from the birthday party I think I ended up with over 100 pictures and an hour and half of video! I don't want to forget a thing! You can find more pictures from the weekend at www.thegilliams.shutterfly.com

Frisco Egg-stravaganza

Last Saturday we went to the huge Easter Egg Hunt that the City of Frisco puts on. We missed the actual egg hunt, but did get to see the Easter Bunny. Weston's favorite part was either running the bases on the baseball field with daddy or sitting in the "Wooo, Woooo" (fire truck). Weston still likes to call things by the sound they make instead of the actual name. Horses are nah, nahs, Monkeys are ahh, ahhs etc. I don't really correct him because I think it's kinda cute. It did take us a long time to figure out what a Woooo, Woooo was though! Back to the egg hunt - Weston cracks us up because he talks about the fire trucks always wants to see them, and gets excited when he hears them. Judging from the pictures you can't tell! I don't know what it is but we get a camera out and he is the most solemn little boy. The egg hunt was at Warren Park and there are several baseball fields out there. Jeremy and Weston ran around the bases and had a great time. I thought the pictures turned out precious! Right now I can hear Weston telling his Daddy "watch baseball Daddy!" Good thing the season has started back up. He is definitely a boy after his Daddy's heart.

Lil' handy man

Jeremy and I had and engagement party to go to Saturday night for my good friend Buffy and her fiance Todd. Sheila and Eric kept Weston for us and she got some great pictures of Weston. It gives me a good idea about what to get him for his birthday!

Weston's test results

We found out good news on Weston's immune system. His IgG antibody level is starting to rise and hopefully will be in the normal range in a few more months! The last time we had his bloodwork done was in June of '05 and the levels were 380 this time March '06 the levels were 480. Up 100 points! Normal range is between 500-1000. Of course we were hoping for over 500 but at least he is showing improvement. The Doctor classified this as transient meaning he will outgrow this disorder! We were worried last time this might be a common variable case meaning he would not outgrow it and more drastic measures would have to be taken. We will keep Weston on antibiotics until the end of May and then see how he does without them. Dr. Van Wagoner said it would be okay to start him in Mother's Day Out in the Fall and "see how he can fly without being on antibiotics." We will have his bloodwork done again in August to see where his IgG levels are at that point. This is definitely about faith and we know that the Lord has a perfect plan for Weston. The Doctor said we should feel very blessed and we certainly do! When I think of how sick Weston could be and think about the fact that he has never been hospitalized I am SO thankful. Also Weston has never shown any side effects to taking an antibiotic everyday. Currently Weston is still on prevacid, nasonex, and amoxil or zithromax everyday. We got to take him off of Flovent and soon the antibiotics. He's getting better everyday!

Tomorrow

We find out the results of Weston's bloodwork tomorrow. We are pretty anxious about this and are hoping Weston can get off of the antibiotic he's been taking for a year. To be more specific he has hypogammaglobuinenima (pretty sure I butchered that spelling!). His body does not make enough of the IgG antibody to fight off infection. As his immunologist put it Weston doesn't have enough army men to fight the battle. But considering all of this Weston has been very healthy this year. So this disorder has not been near as bad as it could be. We are thinking this second year is going to be great for Weston. Thanks to many months of feeding therapy and Vital Stim his swallow problem is gone, he can drink anything and eats all the time! So if we can get his immune problem cured or fixed he is going to be as good as new. I'll update tomorrow with the news. It's pretty amazing to think of what this kid has been through and how he has overcome so much of it. He is overall such a happy and vivacious little kid and such a joy to us!

Weston, Elmo, and Hockey

We took Weston to have his picture made today with his Elmo. I wanted a picture of him and Elmo for his Elmo birthday party. I thought this turned out cute especially considering the mood he was in. I put a link so you could see all the pictures we got tonight. We had them done at the mall and while we were waiting for them to be printed we grabbed a bite to eat. Next to the food court is an ice skating rink and there are always people playing hockey. Weston loves to watch hockey. We have been to two hockey games with him but not sure where the huge fascination has come from. Every time we are at the mall we go by and watch the games or people ice skating. Tonight we ate right by the glass and Weston was glued to the game. He kept yelling "GO GO GO!" He didn't even eat which is very strange for him! Sheila wants to put Hayden in ice skating lessons next year and we may have to do the same for Weston. I also learned today that he likes Nascar. I had the TV on and went to see what he was up to since the house was way to quiet and he was in awe of the races. The one thing that has me a little worried is the two things he has been really into today are hockey and Nascar and I'm not sure I want my son doing either! It's either getting pretty roughed up or driving 200 mph!

Weston's Words

This is more for me to remember what Weston is saying and how he says it. I don't want to forget how cute he sounds!
This morning I asked him where his Diego character was and he said "Dieeeego where r yoooou? Where it go? Oh dere it tis!"
"Mommy dold choo" Mommy hold you. I hear this one a lot!
He loves to throw his football and say TOUCHDOWN!
When he pulls apart his train set he says "Uh Oh Mommy fish it" Meaning he wants me to fix it. He will also tell us exactly where he wants us to sit when we play trains with him. "Play twains, sit dere"
Sophie is Haaphie
When we say prayers he clasps his hands and says AMEN and throws his hands in the air.
He is starting to understand counting and loves to say One, Two, Two.
If we drive by Sonic or McDonald's he says "fren fries pease" He is telling me he wants french fries please. Because I think it's so cute he usually get them it's also a good excuse for me to get a Large Cherry Vanilla Diet Dr. Pepper!
At Target today he kept asking me where the baby went. I have no idea what baby he is talking about and I told him I didn't know where the baby went. He then told me "baby night night." What's strange is we have been to Target twice this week (that's not the strange part!) and both times he has asked about the baby.
I am amazed at how much he learns everyday!

Park

We went to the park with playgroup on Monday, I had to bribe Weston with french fries to get him to leave! Not a good parenting tool but it worked! Angela got out some bubbles for the kids to play with, Weston showed off his good bubble blowing skills. I am sure his speech therapists would be proud. It's a good oral motor exercise and both of his therapists practiced with him. He Payton and Cade had a blast together blowing bubbles and then pouring it all over the sidewalk. We owe Angela several bottles of bubbles!