Reagen Blog

Happy about No Happy

2010-01-14T22:09:00.003-06:00

Well, the long awaited day has finally come, Cameron has been broken of his pacifier habit. (he's always called them his "Happy"). We've been weaning him for some time from it and slowly whittling down to him just having the happy when going to bed. One night, he didn't ask for it - we didn't offer it and that was enough of a sign. The next night was definitely like a 'right of passage'. It was reminiscent of the scene from Mr. Mom where Ken gives up his wooby. I explained to Cameron that another little boy needed his pacifiers and that the 'Happy Fairy' came for them. Cameron promptly punched me in the nose. He was sooooooooooo sad. I laid by his side while he went to sleep and I thought about my little boy growing up. Yes, we both cried that night.

Ian & Flu Shots

2009-09-23T21:37:00.003-05:00

Just a peek into Ian's psyche, but today after he got home from school his cousins were over. He realized that during the day (while Ian was at school), everyone got a flu shot besides him as the kids were all talking about it. Ian then demanded that he go get his flu shot that instant and was extremely forceful about it. Recognizing the uniqueness of the situation, Erin piled five kids into the car (ours + the 2 cousins) and drove everyone to get Ian's flu shot. He never let up on his goal through the 20 minute wait and even demanded that cousin Mari come in with him to show her he wouldn't cry when he got it.

Which he didn't.

I'm amazed. He might as well have said "boo - yah" when he was done.

New Pics Added (9/8)

2009-09-08T22:34:00.000-05:00

New pictures added to the site - can't believe I let this go this long. Some great ones in there!!

Ian starts kindergarten

2009-09-03T21:45:00.003-05:00

Exactly one week ago, on August 27th, my baby boy started kindergarten. It seems like just yesterday I was bringing him home from the hospital. Ian seemed to be doing pretty well leading up to the first day of Kindergarten. Afterall, he was returning to the same school, same teacher and half of the same kids(at montessori preschoolers and kindergarteners are together)--so really the only change was that he would be going all day. When asked by well meaning friends and strangers and even the principal if he was excited to start Kindergarten--he would promptly answer "no". He was especially nervous about "specials"(PE, Music and art) as well as lunch b/c those were the unfamiliar things that he did not do as a preschooler.
On the first day of school Ian didn't seem overly nervous. He got up and got dressed in a hurry. Nate and Ian headed out the door and we were optimistic that the transition would go well. Even as Nate and Ian put his things away in the locker--Ian and Nate were joking around. But as they reached the door to his room Ian refused to go in and refused to let go of Nate. It went on long enough that the Principal noticed that they were having a hard time and got down on Ian's level and tried to help. Nate could see that this was failing and finally decided that he just needed to leave. With the Principal holding Ian's shoulders Nate left with Ian crying and shouting down the hallway "daddy!"
Nate soon called me and told me what had happened and I spent most of the morning crying on and off. I just felt so bad for Ian. 3:00pm couldn't come fast enough that day. I made sure that I got there early so that I could be one of the first ones there. As I saw Ian walking down the hall with his class I could tell that he was happy and relaxed. He was happy to see me--but not in a needy way. I asked him how his day went and he said good but I'm still scared of PE because I haven't gone there yet.
The next day Ian got ready and went to school and without any hesitation he walked right into the room. When I went to pick him up the first thing he told me with a proud grin on his face was "I went to PE today mom and I have a surprise--I like it!!" He looked so happy and relieved and so was I.
Ian now has one week under his belt and now it seems to be smooth sailing. Last night before bed when Nate asked him what he is thankful for he said "I'm thankful that I like Kindergarten." That says it all!!

Other Ian updates:
Learned to ride a bike--but still very cautious on it

Spent 4 days at "cousin camp"--and loved every minute of it

Ian and Cam spend 3 days in Minnesota with Grandparents whirlwind tour of every kid worthy attraction in the Twin Cities. Ian rode his first rollercoaster!!!

Ian is enjoying soccer more--he even kicked the ball a few times in the game.

What's new with the kiddos!!

2009-04-05T20:48:00.002-05:00

Ian is now reading books!! It is such an exciting thing to see this new world opening up to him. It all started when Luke gave him some of his old simple phonics books. At first Ian wouldn't even pick them up. He was acting strange(as he always seems to do when he's faced with a new situation or challenge). He threw the book and said he was never going to read it. I said that was okay and that I would read it to him. Once I started reading he gradually took over and read the entire book without struggling. That gave him the confidence to do the next one. Now when we go up to bed at night he reads me a book and then I read him one. The other night he made it to page 52 in Hop on Pop. I think that I could sit and listen to him read forever.

Ian also started soccer(somewhat against his will). He is on a team with his Cousin, Andrew, and 2 good friends--Riley and Clare. He surprised us by jumping right into practice and having a great time. Saturday was his first game--and he refused to play. He told me that the part he didn't like was that the other team is trying to score goals. I guess we should have explained that to him in advance.

Cam is becoming a little man. He just got his first real(non parent) haircut this weekend and it makes him look so old. Cameron is so sweet most of the time--but when he is mad he starts hitting whoever is nearby. He continues to be our little puppy dog--so playful and loving. He tries to keep up with Ian and wants to play soccer. Cam does have a bit of trouble telling fact from fiction. ie. When he asks for his "happy" during the day I tell him he can't have it unless he is in his bed to which he replies adamantly, "I am in bed." He then gets very angry when I insist that he is in the kitchen not in bed.

Cam also says the funniest things. The other day I was laying in bed with him during his afternoon nap. He was laying there quietly for the longest time. He then rolled over and looked at me with the most forlorned expression and said in his raspy voice--"Mom, I am so sad." When I asked him why he replied--"I am sad that I can't juggle." I told him he could close his eyes and pretend he was juggling. He then closed his eyes and with the biggest smile on his face he began doing the juggling motion.

Hope is so cute and wonderful that Nate and I want to freeze her in time so that she will never grow up. She is so happy and playful. She loves mimicking and playing games of all sorts--Such as "5 little monkeys and Patty-cake" She is talking like crazy. I was going to try to write down all of the words she says--but it is impossible--she says too many. Although many of her works are hard to understand--she is starting to talk in complete sentences. Some of my favorite things she says are "What happened" or she may grab my hand and say "Come here." The boys love getting here to say "poop and pee" to which they laugh so she does over and over. Hope loves her brothers--even though they can get quite rough with her. If they are rough housing--she wants to join right in. She also loves balls--she calls the all basketballs.

Hope is starting to exhibit some temper tantrums---which are a bit scary for us. She is very strong willed and gets very upset when she doesn't get her way. She threw herself down in the middle of Target the other day when I wouldn't buy her a ball and then yelled all the way to the front as a carried her and tried to push my cart and get the boys to follow me "I want my ball." I think that someone forgot to tell Hope that we already have far too many opinions in this house and we don't need one more.

All and all life is good in the Reagen household. We are looking forward to warm weather and lots of time outdoors. We feel blessed everyday(well, most days!!!) to have these wonderful little people in our lives. They continue to amaze us.

Ian's Starting To Read

2009-02-26T21:23:00.000-06:00

Yep, it's really fun. We were at the airport last week (watching planes take off and land) and he was doing a great job reading all the road and parking lot signs. DO NOT ENTER has never been so exciting!

Bye! Da-Da!

2009-02-09T21:43:00.002-06:00

This is what Hope said to me on my way out the door today; with a big-ol smile on her face. She makes me feel like a million bucks almost everyday. What a wonderful, growing, little girl! (She also hardly crawls anymore)

Hope is Walking! (for real)

2009-01-27T20:12:00.002-06:00

OK, this time she's really walking. It's been a while since she had the ability (and has been able) to walk, but for some reason - she waited until this past Saturday night to walk more than crawl. It was really funny as we had some friends over (and playing singstar of course) and there was Hope, walking around all of us. Too funny; and great to see! :-)

Hope is Walking!

2008-12-14T21:49:00.000-06:00

Can you believe it? It's so fun to see, but she's starting to take several steps in a row. She still has some time before she's really moving, but check out the video on our "video page". :-)

Poopy-Head

2008-11-29T22:54:00.003-06:00

That word (Poopy-head) gets dropped about 879 times a day at our household. Sometimes it is used as an adjective: "poopy-head Dad!!" and sometimes a noun "you're a poopy-head" to which is often accompanied by "no, YOU'RE a poopy-head". Poopy-head. Just so you can get the feel of it. Poopy-head.

We also (temporarily) have six kids in our house instead of the normal three, so the chances of getting to the 879 word count quota are much easier. Life with young kids! ;-)

Happy Birthday Hope!

2008-10-31T21:46:00.001-05:00

Hope turned one today and we couldn't be more excited for her. It's been a long time since we've blogged. Not sure what our problem is. Oh yeah, tired with three kids! :-0

The monkey steals a happy (pacifier) --July 2008

2008-08-29T20:33:00.004-05:00

Ian and Cameron spent 5 days up in Minnesota with the Grandparent's this July while Nate, Hope and I relaxed in Iowa(Thanks Gary and Kathleen). One of their many outings while they were there was to the Minnesota Zoo. Soon after they arrived at the zoo, they were looking over a railing down to where the monkey's were. Cameron, in his excitement, accidentally dropped his "happy" (his pacifier) down into where the monkey's were. One of the monkey's walked over to it, picked and up and looked at it and promptly put it in his mouth and started sucking on it. Meanwhile, Cameron is screaming hysterically "I want my happy" and trying with all of his might to get to where the monkey is. The grandparents, worried that they would be the morning headlines in the Star Tribune, rapidly fled the scene with screaming child in hand. As they left the zoo a couple of hours later--the monkey was still sucking on the happy. What a sight that must have been. I am not sure if Cameron will ever like monkeys or find humor in the situation.

Swamped

2008-07-07T22:47:00.002-05:00

We've been good, but just swamped with the attempt to sell our house. It's been quite busy lately! The kids are GREAT, Cameron just turned two today (new pictures online of his party) and Hope & Ian have been in a good way.

"I Want to Buy a Happy"

2008-05-27T22:33:00.003-05:00

When we pulled into the Target parking lot tonight, Cameron promptly announced "I Want to Buy a Happy" (pacifier). It took us about four times, but we finally figured out what he was saying. He's been carrying his two-pack of "happy's" around all night.

It's been a while since we've posted everything, but for the most part - all is well. The kids (and parents) remain healthy - which is always a good thing. All three kiddos have been in great moos and are very much being their unique selves. The warmer weather has been awesome and the kids are outside as much as possible.

It's Good to Be Famous. ;-)

2008-03-19T21:51:00.002-05:00

Josh and I (Nate) had an amazing day yesterday. Not only did we get to play a basketball game on the United Center floor, win the game, while playing with a former NBA player, watch a private Bulls practice, meet the Bud Light "Real Men of Genius" guys, have plenty of food and drink, hang out ON CENTER COURT for the 1/2 hour before the real game and get to hand the game ball to the ref where it's me, the ref and the 10 players on the court. Wow. I'm still on cloud nine!!!

What a great once in a lifetime experience!!!

Broken Leg

2008-03-10T21:40:00.003-05:00

Thursday morning started like any other morning around here. We weren't moving very fast b/c Ian didn't have school and we were planning to stay at home and babysit my friends daughter. Ian and Cameron were goofing around on the couch. Cameron even went and got the stool to make it easier to get up on the couch. One minute Cam was standing on the couch playing, the next minute he had been ("accidentally") knocked off the couch as Ian threw his body over the back of the couch. Cameron immediately began screaming and I picked him up and tried to comfort him. In the beginning I didn't think much of it. Cam seems to get hurt at least 50 times a day, and I usually find him walking on the kitchen table or with a sharp object of some sort once a day--he seems to have an eye for things he shouldn't have. Who'd of thought a fall from the couch would be his fall from grace. I really expected him to stop crying and go off running. But after 15 minutes he was still hysterical and I started to get worried. I started to make plans to head to the pediatrician. He was grabbing his left leg--but it looked normal. There was no red mark, no bruising, no swelling--it looked identical to his right leg. I started to get stuff together to get out the door to the doctor. Cameron tried to get off the couch to follow me, but collapsed on the floor screaming unable to bear weight on his leg. This is when I realized he was hurt worse than I first believe and headed to urgent care. My parents met me at urgent care--thank God. I couldn't have done it alone. It was impossible to take care of both Cam and Hope. Even though Cam was miserable and just wanting to be held, he still smiled and tried to talk to people in the waiting room. The xray revealed a fractured Tibia("shin") aka "toddlers fracture". Description and xray can be seen at:
http://www.e-radiography.net/radpath/t/toddlersfrx.htm
I had to hold back tears when I heard that my baby boy had a broken leg.

We were referred to a Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon and he saw Cameron right away. Nate was able to make it in time to hear what the Dr. had to say. Cameron was put unto a "boot" instead of a cast. He will wear it for one month. The Dr. was real casual about it. He said that it would heal without any trouble and that Cameron could bear weight on it as soon as he is ready. Nate and I were both relieved.

Cameron was so sad the first couple of days and would just sit on our laps and be carried around. He would pull at his boot and say, "want take boot off". It was so sad to see him like that. Now he is having less pain and feeling better, but he is getting more frustrated that he can't do the things that he wants to do. This is making him very high maintenance and difficult. Today he has started crawling and scooting, but he is not satisfied with this and is still quite needy. I am hoping that with each passing day he will become more mobile and more independent. I am grateful that in a month he will be healed and running all over the place. He will probably even be climbing up on the table again!!!

The missing slipper

2008-02-22T21:08:00.003-06:00

I tend to lose things often around the house and then conveniently blame this on my kids. One of my slippers had been missing for a couple of days and I commented out loud to Cameron that my feet were cold and I sure wish that I could find my slipper. He got his huge "cat that swallowed the cannery" smile and pitter pattered across the living room, behind the TV and pulled out my slipper. I guess I know who I will be asking from now o

A Night to Remember

2008-02-08T13:26:00.001-06:00

So, last night as I'm driving Ian and a friend home from playing (and ice cream!) - and I look in the rear-view mirror just in time to see Ian's friend Max have a bucket load of puke come streaming out of him. Oh-my-gosh. What do I do? Ian started screaming hysterically (as he's extremely smell-sensitive) and is crying and yelling. Meanwhile, Max is just fine sitting there like nothing has happened.

Max pukes some more; causing Ian to go in further hysterics. I called Erin in a panic (heading home now) to get stuff ready. Then I hear this from the back seat: "Dad, I just did what Max did". Oh no. Now what. (another panicked call to Erin - 'bring more!') I start driving much more aggressively to get home while trying to send positive, calming messages to the back seat. (they did very well all things considered) As I'm making it closer to home, I'm thinking 'it won't be that bad, it won't be that bad'.

We get home, I unbuckle, turn around and yes - it's that bad.

It's hard to fully communicate the waterfall of vomit that was now our backseat. Both boys (doing so well) are sitting there with puke all over their hands, shirt, pants, shoes, the book max was reading, the seat, floor, seat-belts, etc, etc, etc. It was truly a scene from a movie. Horror movie probably.

Erin and I managed to hold down our 'urps' and get both boys out of the car (very carefully) and Erin took over managing four kids in the house (with two crying at all times) and I tackled the car. Max's Mom came over (poor Mom) and helped clean, do laundry and manage the chaos.

I ran around to car washes, auto-parts stores and finally rented a "Rug Doctor" (with attachment to tackle the van). Cleaning involved taking both kids' car seats completely apart, a spoon, tupperware bowl, and more. After a couple of hours - a sigh of relief and "whew, what a day to remember".

Except the story isn't over. This morning I go to return the rug doctor and on the way home I still smell it. What could I have missed? I go back and somehow, some way, the puke had run down off of the seat, through the seatbelt 'hole' in the backseat and created another significant pile of puke entirely beneath the backseat. UGHGHGHGH.

Well - it's all clean now. The van is sitting open; and we're hoping for that 'clean car smell' when we get back in.

What a night!

The Golden Rule

2008-02-08T13:22:00.000-06:00

As a father, it is so exciting to be able to impart life's wisdom upon your children. Ian's now about old enough that I've started to teach him one of the first truth's of life in the Golden Rule: 'treat other people the way you wish to be treated'.

As we were getting out of the mini-van the other day, Cameron hit Ian as he walked by to which Ian immediately hit him back and said promptly: "Dad, I followed the Golden Rule. Cameron wanted me to hit him."

Whups, I forgot about that part - the Golden Rule only applies to yourself! He was listening though. ;-)

5 am wake-ups, almost everyone getting sick and still loving life

2008-01-24T09:41:00.000-06:00

Well, to be exact 5:10 - 5:20 wake-ups that is. Ian, for some unknown reason, decided to start waking up that early in the morning when hew was previously getting up more like seven. It was brutal and I just sent him downstairs to watch whatever was on TV. One morning he almost got Erin up because we needed to call "Right Away"! He was all excited about a thing that went over buttons and zippers . . . . I guess all that is on that early is infomercials. ;-)

We finally got him to turn around by changing fourthings: 1) Moved his mattress out of his bedroom into ours 2) Moved Erin & Hope back downstairs (for sleeping) 3) Eliminated Ian's naps 4) Told Ian if he wakes up when the first number on the clock is a seven, then Dad will get up with him. Unbelievably, it worked - and now he gets up at 7:00 (exactly) every day. Whew!!

In other news, almost everyone (besides Dad) has gotten sick in our family. It's so, so sad to see your kids not feeling well. I can't describe it, but it was almost hard to look at them being so sad. Fortunately, they didn't feel too bad - just looked like it. Cam played the whole time he was sick - and I think everyone is getting better now (Erin and Hope included). (Erin was pretty rough there for a little bit)

Dad still isn't working; which on one hand might seem stressful and strange - but really it's not. To us, this is what life is truly about - spending time with each other and just trying to enjoy each day. It's not perfect and we're certainly not being financially sound - but more money truly is just a conduit to what we already have.

Lastly, thanks to Alisa for getting me back on the PC to write this blog entry - it's about time we get a little caught up!

I just looked down at my daughter who's just sitting in her 'bouncy seat' patiently waiting while I type this. As always, even when a little sick, she just looks up at me and smiles. Life is good.

December Update

2007-12-27T21:06:00.000-06:00

Wow - time really went fast, but amazingly enough - Hope is almost two months old. She really has been SUCH a joy and so different from her two brothers. Her first two months were fairly manageable. HER highlights include:

She sleeps in the car!!! Even on long car trips!!!
She slept in my lap while I was surfing the internet
She sleeps well at night
She doesn't cry all the time
She's getting so darn cute and smiles a ton (just this last week)

The boys have been doing fairly well, although I think the chaos of Christmas really is getting Ian whacked out. Cameron is and always will be Cameron: happy, loud, demanding and a walking liability.

Erin and I are holding together, but sleep always seems to elude us. We can't complain though - life is definitely good and - we're quite grateful that we get to be so fortunate to have these three kids!

A Day in the Life of Cameron

2007-11-12T20:53:00.000-06:00

So, in trying to keep up with Cameron today - I'll try to remember everything he did in just one day WITH at least two adults around:

Was found playing with the toilet brush in the toilet
Scattered stuff all over the bathroom floor
Kept taking stuff out of the junk drawer and running away
Somehow found a partially empty pudding container and smeared pudding all over our new couch
Managed to alert the entire Hobby Lobby store to his presence
Flirted with most everyone at the grocery store
Laughed so much it's hard not to laugh with him
Cried so much you just want to leave the room
Said "happy" 2,248 times
Said "ungie" about 276 times (hungry)
Got a hold of a marker and bit the entire tip off
Grabbed a screwdriver from Ian and started running with it
Tried to climb into the dishwasher
Kept running into where Hope was sleeping saying "bay-bee"
Cried when Dad picks up Hope
Tried running into the street 54 times
Tried eating magnets off the fridge while running away from Mom
Almost knocked our globe off a stand and knocked the stand over
Turned the volume all the way up on the TV

Whew! Now, I'm nervous about tomorrow. :-|

Update on the Kids

2007-11-11T21:17:00.000-06:00

At 10 days old, Hope continues to spend most of her time sleeping and eating. The brief times she is awake - she's content and just looks around. So little and cute! She's great - here's a great one of her today.

The boys have been just great. Ian, amazingly and refreshingly has been acting so good lately and I swear, each day he gets better. He's been very good with her and curious, but not overwhelming either. We're really proud of him the last couple of days.

Cameron is just Cam - very loud when he wants to be, but cute as always. He's like a little play doll and each day, playing with him doesn't get old. He's talking more now and often you'll hear him rattling off the roster of people he knows in his life.

Erin is doing wonderfully and in great spirits. As we've said before - life is good!

Cameron: Just so Fun

2007-11-06T20:33:00.000-06:00

So, we're trying to go up the stairs at home the other day - and like always, Cameron is whining about something I can't figure out. I let him crawl: he's upset. I pick him up: he's upset. But the other night, I held his hands; and this time he walked up the stairs like a normal person. Ahhhhhh, that's exactly what he wanted. :-0

One Week Update On Hope Elizabeth

2007-11-06T20:31:00.000-06:00

Wow, that was a fast week! Hey - we couldn't be reporting better news over here. Erin is having her best recovery yet, Hope is doing wonderfully (sleeping, eating, peeing, pooping - the basics) and all are well. We are certainly having our challenges with our oldest - but hopefully that will be over soon?

Otherwise, it's been a great transition to a family of five - we're quite happy!