Silas is 2 today

If it weren't for all the trouble this little guy gets into it would be hard to believe he is two. 

He's grown so much in the past few weeks.  And he woke up yesterday visibly taller and seemingly chubbier. 

His vocabulary is amazing.  He speaks both English and Spanish.  When he wants my attention he calls me in Spanish.  When he wants to cuddle he calls me Mommy.  Ditto all that for Scott only using papa and daddy.  His drink is always referred to as Agua.  When he wants to go with Bethany to the gas station he says Ancap (that's the name of the station).  Moto's are momo's, and when we try to teach him the correct way to say it he puts the emphasis on the second m, little stinker.  Some of his words are always in English, some in Spanish and others are bi-lingual - car/auto, cat/gato, cow/vaca, bread/pan, mommy/mama, daddy/papa and baby/bebe.  And if I want him to come to me I have to tell him in Spanish.

Though I'm teaching him to be a good Denver Broncos fan, he plays football futbol like the Uruguayans - with his feet and a soccer ball.  When he kicks the ball he says, "Goal."  The other day when Brandon was in the nursery with me he was tossing a Koosh ball to the "babies".  Everyone of them pulled their hands back and let the ball hit their heads, chests or tummies.  Silas included. 



And he drinks and tries to serve mate (ma -tay)!  It's actually quite the thing to see him take over Sebastian's mate and thermos.


When we ask him for a kiss he usually offers his cheek for us to kiss him or he gives us a Uruguayan greeting.

Yes, two wonderful years have passed with our little chubby bubby and we are thankful for everyday with him.  And we are so glad all of our family will get to meet him while we are home on furlough. 

SPRING!

It is so nice to hear, and say, that word after a long cold winter filled with illness. Of course, it sure would be nice to have more Spring like weather, and as long as the sun is shining it's not too bad.

Adeline seems to be handling Spring very well...so far. Which is a good trade-off because Silas has been sick all winter. He gets better and then I head back to church with him only to have him come down sick again the next day. I wonder if he just can't handle the time in the cold (no heat in the church) or if we need to do some heavy duty disinfecting. I have been sick a lot too and this past week something has attacked my throat...not fun.

Spring also means playing outside and that means accidents. Last night we were away in Montevideo for a BWM meeting and got a phone call that Silas had been hurt. According to Nehemiah, Silas was in the wagon and he fell out onto his face and was dragged on the ground...all while sitting in the wagon. Hmmm, I think, that just maybe, we aren't getting the whole story. I'm thankful that it wasn't any worse than it is.

Praise and Prayer

The weddings, both civil and church, were wonderful! Pastor Andres and Maria Eugenia planned a lovely, Lord honoring wedding and reception. Scott was able to preach the gospel to over 25 first time visitors there for the wedding. Maria Eugenia's grandmother and mom told me that the message was very understandable and they enjoyed it. Without doubt the newly married couple would appreciate your prayers for the salvation of those present at the wedding, including Maria Eugenia's parents and sister, who do not yet know the Lord. Once the couple is back from their honeymoon and I have their permission I will post some pictures I took.

Earlier, on Friday, Scott received a text from Sabina saying that she was home. She still has some recovery time ahead of her and we know you all will continue to pray for her. We are trusting that she is looking to the Lord for the strength she needs. We were able to give her a Bible study on Holiness and a missionary biography to read.

It has been since last November that we experienced any problems with asthma, praise the Lord. Then in one fell swoop we have had too of our little people in the ER with asthma crisis'. Friday right before the wedding I was there with Silas. And Scott just returned from ER with Adeline. Evidently this cold we all have (except for Brandon and Scott) hits the asthmatic lungs pretty hard. All of us, that are sick, have bad headaches, runny noses and coughs. Thankfully though we have no fever (and we aren't oinking).

Crunch Week

This week has to be one of the busiest weeks we've had thus far in 2009. Not only are we getting ready for a wedding on Friday for Rebeca and Dante, members of the church, but we also have VBS next week, and school and Bible institute to get ready for, plus we have Kaitlin and Bethany's birthdays. I told Kaitlin that the only thing that could have made this week crazier was if this was her 15th birthday and we had a quinceañera (sp) for her.

Well it turned out that we had to take a trip to the ER early this morning with the baby. He started getting sick a couple days ago but it turned for the worst last night. He was struggling to breathe and about 1am I thought he was needing to see a doctor. A few minutes later I watched him breathing and saw he was retracting. So I woke Scott up and we headed the the hospital.

Thankfully our favorite pediatrician was there and he saw Silas right away. After listening to his lungs he ordered a chest x'ray. And began to fill out the admission forms. I thought this really is not a good week for this.

During the x'ray I stood in there with him while the film was taken. Without a lead apron! Ugh! I think OSHA would have an absolute fit especially since the vet tech in me screams everytime they do this. So far I've been exposed to the same rads as my kids 6 times.

Anyway...the pneumonia the doctor thought was there, wasn't! Thank the LORD! He got a diagnosis of Bronchiolitis and was sent home on Pred and Ventolin inhaler. He's up and around today even though he had a rough night.

Please pray with us that he will be all well before Friday, and that no one else will get this. Scott is marrying the couple, I am the one making sure all goes off as planned (mistress of ceremonies says a friend of mine), Brandon is escorting the bride's sister, Kaitlin is playing the piano for two specials, Bethany is page turning the music for Kaitlin, Nehemiah is the Bible bearer, and Simeon is the Ring bearer. Talk about a family affair! As you can see more sickness is not very welcome.

Big Bad Bacteria

Last week was an adventure! Monday we headed to Montevideo to have my feet checked and scanned for shoe inserts. I've had a bunion on my left foot since I was in high school and though it has bothered me I've adapted to the pain. Lately, though, it has really been bothering me. Right now they doctors have opted to try and help my foot through means other than surgery. I'm not sure how much I'll like the inserts but I'm definitely hoping they help.

Back to last week. Early Tuesday morning I heard a loud rumble coming from the vicinity of Silas' bed. More specifically his diaper. Fun. Well, not really, especially since I had to change his clothes because the excessive amount of diarrhea was not at all contained. After laying him back in bed and going back to sleep I was once again roused by sounds of rumbling. This time though the sun was up and so after I changed and fed him I took him out to Scott.

Just as I was planning my day, which included helping over at the kids school, Silas had a large rumbly in his tummy that escaped out his mouth. Definitely not Winnie the Pooh's Huny. I don't do well with stuff like that!!! I was praying that would be it. It wasn't.

So after 4 days of diarrhea, several vomiting episodes (including two all over me), fever (on and off) a sunken soft spot, dried out lips, lethargy, and fussiness we took him in to the hospital. The on call doctor checked him and quickly called in for the pediatrician. Once Dr. Llambi saw Silas he told us he was in need of rehydration. So up we went to the pediatric room. This was the first IV, which he pulled out about an hour later. Actually he didn't pull it out it flew out when he swumg his arm. And that was after he had already been poked to have blood drawn.
Silas was clearly perplexed by this painful addition to his arm.
Figuring he'd make the best of a bad situation he decided to chew on his IV line.

After two attempts, his new IV line is in and secured better this time. (Below)
Playing in his bed. He was definitely feeling better.

The swollen eyes after being on Lactated Ringer fluids. I'm a little concerned by this as it looks very much like an allergy. He hasn't had any problems with dairy though so....

So now we are home and Silas is on antibiotics for an intestinal bacterial infection. And since today he is 11 months old this will be his 11 month old post too. Only one more month to go and he's a year old. Wow, where did the time go?

Silas Crawls

"Hey Mom just wanted to let you know Silas is crawling. I got it on video."

Kaitlin definitely did catch this grand moment on film...on her phone. It's not a file type that Blogger will read. So, Grandpa and Grandma Duncan, Grandma Jay, and Grandma and Grandpa B, we'll try to email you the video. Until then here is a different video I thought you might enjoy.

I Must be Hearing Things

Or did I just hear the doctor tell me that Silas is sick because he is cutting teeth?! I think at moments like this, every mother in the world would feel appreciated. Yep, there truly are some things I LOVE about Uruguay!

Turning Eight Together.

July 6th was a fun day for Adeline as she got to celebrate her 8th birthday with her baby brother celebrating his 8 month birthday. We had a great day with her! I still marvel at all the times God has protected her in keeping her safe during anaphylactic reactions to food. And in helping her through mulitple cases of pneumonia.

Kaitlin baked her specialty, Wacky cake. And I made pink, blue and yellow colored popcorn. She got all kinds of goodies. And several cards from the USA. She had her first birthday sleep over with her Peruvian friend, Debora. And she's looking forward to doing some shopping with her birthday money from Grandma Jay and Grandma and Grandpa B.

We're in the process of recovering my Trojan horse attacked computer. Once that is done I'll be able to upload some photos of her birthday.

Silas at Seven Months

"Uh-oh, I've been caught!"

Unless he was practicing in his bed, this was Silas' first attempt at crawling.

"Uh-oh, I've been caught!"

Years ago, 15 1/2 to be exact, Scott and I watched Brandon lift his chubby little tummy up off the floor. Thrilled to see this effort towards crawling we got down on the floor with him and cheered and encouraged and coaxed him to do it again. He was only 4 months old and that was the beginning of the end of a non-baby proofed home. It was only 4 months later that he graduated from crawling to walking. A short time later he was almost 16 years old, but wait that's not what I'm going to blog about today especially since I still have 2 months before that really happens.

Ok, back on track here, Silas just turned seven months old and it seems he wanted to enter his seventh month with bells on. No, he's not walking, but he is making big attempts to crawl. One day he just lay on his tummy on his cute little bear rug, then next thing you know he was up on his hands and knees, rocking and ready to take off. After seven children before Silas we know our life of ease (ha, ha, is there really such a thing with children?) is now over. He is schooching everywhere. I guess you can figure out that we aren't on the floor cheering him on. Nope, we are happy letting him figure things out on his own. After all it will be just a short time and he'll be turning 16 too.

The Michelin Man

After putting Silas' socks on him the other day we all had to laugh. His legs are so chubby that he looks like the Michelin Cartoon Man on the commercials. Too cute!!!

Our Pastor is enjoying playing with Silas. Pastor Wagner is not a Grandpa (yet) and it really is a shame because he has always been wonderful with our children. By the way, the kids were thrilled to get candy from the States.

Here is the 4 month picture I promised. I can't get "sitting" pictures anymore because he pulls himself forward and falls over. Not good when a hard tile floor is looming just below.

Sorry folks

Well, I certainly have been neglecting the blog. Sorry, folks. Things are a bit crazy here.

Our sending church pastor is here for a week. It has been great to have him here! This is his second time to visit to ministry here. He came with us on our survey trip. Last night he preached to the teens. Today he preaches for both services. Tuesday is a staff meeting and Pastor will bring the devotional. On Wednesday he preaches for the final time. Thursday he leaves for Brazil.

Silas turned four months old this week. I'll post some pictures later. He weighes 7 kilos and 450 grams. And measures 64.5 cm. Brandon still takes the prize for the fattest baby at 4 months old; weighing in at a whopping 18.2 pounds and two weeks later he weighed 19.2 pounds.

We had our first eye exams in the country. The most modern form of medicine we have seen since we arrived. Kaitlin enjoyed it when I had to put on the Mr McGoo glasses. Since I'm approaching the 20th anniversary of my 18th birthday I had to prove I didn't need bi-focals.

Finally we had a BBQ yesterday with the pastoral staff and families - 23 people. Brandon did a spectacular job with the asado (BBQ). He's been my kitchen helper of late and I'm really enjoying this time with him. And after yesterday he has earned the title of official Asador (BBQ'er) for the Borrmann family.

Chubby Bubby

Silas turns 3 months old today. I think he may take the Chubby Bubby award soon. Until now, Brandon has held the long standing record of our chubbiest baby, but he was a formula baby. Silas is at 7 kilos, and the girls hold him for shorter periods of time now. Simeon prefers to lay by Silas instead of holding him. Last week I switched out all of his 0-3 month clothes for the 3-6 and 6-9 month clothes. Some of the "new" outifts will only be useful for him for a short time since he is nearly maxing them out.

Once I finish this disk of photos I'll post one here of Silas at 3 months.

Eating Yeast?

We have had some extremely hot days this summer and when it is over 100° without factoring in the humidity it sure can be miserable. Thankfully the worst days have had some nice days intermixed which gives us a much needed break from the heat. These pictures were taken on one of those miserably hot days. Isn't Silas the most absolutely adorable little boy?! His face has so much expression. And as you can see his little body is getting rather rotund. One of the men at church just asked me if he was eating yeast. I had to laugh with him because Silas certainly does resemble a rising loaf of bread.

Silas' dedication.

Baby shower for Silas, Esteban and Jeremias

Presents from the church were attached to small Christmas trees. What a neat idea!

Debbie, Rebekah and Elida open the gifts for their baby's. Elida was still with child.

Judy Baltzersen, Amparo and Debbie with Silas.

The group photo. In front Debbie with Silas, Rebekah with Esteban and Elida.

Changing his mind.

After an hour of strong contractions at 3-4 minutes apart we headed to the hospital. The doctor confirmed things were a go and for about four hours things were looking good then all of a sudden the contractions came to a halt. So here we are back at home waiting for Silas.

Honestly, it is a let down, especially when you've literally been up all night. But I can see the benefits of last nights "trial run"; mainly that the Lord relieved some concerns of mine over the delivery of this baby here: our doctor made it from his town to ours without incident, the preps they do for childbirth here aren't as bad as I imagined they would be, and though still difficult the language barrier is manageable.

Scott heads to the airport on Wednesday morning to pick up our friends, Bill and Judy B. Everything looks pretty much in order for their stay and we are so looking forward to seeing them - in just 2 more sleeps! Please pray for traveling mercies for them as they will have nearly 20 hours travel time ahead of them.

Is it really THAT big???

As Silas has grown, and as a result my belly, the statement "que pancita" has changed to "que panza". Not only has the statement changed but the inflection has gone from a sweet sing songy sound to more of a statement with a WOW inflection. I'm certainly thankful that my delivery date is on the near horizon. Thanks to all who are praying for a safe delivery. I ask that you please add an ability for me to understand the delivery (childbirth) technical Spanish as well as all that will be entailed during my stay in the hospital.

Almost done

Today is my last full day of bed rest, at least it should be. With less than three weeks until my due date I am almost done and definitely ready to meet Silas. I have my OB appointment tomorrow and should be released from the bed rest restriction. Speaking of appointments let me explain how the appointment schedule works here, it is actually rather different.

If one wants to see a doctor the appointment is usually set for the time the doctor arrives that day to see patients. From there it's a first come, first serve idea where they basically just fill in the slots. If you are the 5th person to request an appointment you are number 5. Since I'm number 18 it is entirely possible I could be there all morning. With some doctors you can estimate when you should show up, but others will go through their list of appointments when they arrive, if you aren't there when they are you're bumped off the list.

As for lab, x-ray, and ultrasound appointment the appointment time is the time you are seen. Unless the techinician running the test is running behind. If that's the case who knows how long you'll be there. Once nice thing about this system is they actually call you by name and you don't have to keep up with which number they just called.

Since I'm number 18 for a 9 0'clock appointment Ruth and I should have plenty of time for catching up. Plus she usually makes opportunities to witness to those around us while I supply the tracts, team effort all the way.

The comforts of home...

Here in Uruguay cookies have a different texture and taste. At this point I've not seen a real chocolate chip cookie for sale in a bakery or grocery store. For some reason (hmmm, pregnancy...maybe) these past few days I've had a sweet tooth. Yesterday Scott asked what I wanted and I told him I'd love a chocolate chip cookie but would have to do without because they have to be made at home and I'm on bedrest. His reply was an easy, "Which recipe do you use? I'll make some." To be willing to make chocolate chip cookies after he's already pulling his normal load and now mine too makes him the husband of the year! The cookies were absolutely delicious way better than my best cookies. I'll just close by saying I'm definitely not going to lose weight while I'm on bed rest Scott is a terrific cook.