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McKenzie Wynn Brown 12/27/05 8:32 PM 1 lb. 9.5 oz. |
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Stories 12-21-08 5:00 P.M. So I guess that you can tell that I got a new camera for Christmas. Thanks Aahna! I have had alot of fun figuring out my new toy, and everyone gets to benefit from it. It's been a long crazy time since I've last updated, so I'll hit a few of the high points. As most everyone knows, I have gone back to work at Scott and White. I am doing clinical research in the department of Rheumatology. I have 2 clinical trials that I am responsible for running both dealing with Rheumatoid Arthritis. It's a joy to see people that were previously hurting now able to enjoy their lives more because of the drug that we are able to give to them for free. Because Mommy's a working woman now, McKenzie has started to Pre-school. She is in Ms. Tish's class, and is loving every minute of it. She comes home with crafts, coloring sheets, and tons of knowledge. Her vocabulary has exploded, and she is speaking in clear complete sentences. Most impressive of all is her correct use of pronouns. We're so proud! The potty training is not going so well, but I'm trying not to stress about it. She's pretty adamant about not going on the toilet, so I'm hoping that some positive peer pressure from the kiddos at school will influence her to "be a big girl." Jake is half-way done with his residency program and has started moonlighting in rural hospitals. This is definitely good for our finances but also good for Jake. He's grown very confident lately in his profession and has even started thinking about where we'll go next. He's had one interview in Longview so far, and I am thrilled he's thinking about going closer to home. I like central Texas and all, but it is WAY too far from home. On a side note, Jake finally got his new truck. It's something that he's looked forward to since he started med school, so it was a great day for both of us. All the years of school and training is starting to pay off. Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah, Cindy! 6-4-08 2:00 P.M. (naptime) The month of May was an absolute whirlwind for the Browns. The second weekend Mac and I drove in for cousin Megan's wedding showers and bachelorette party. Aunt Wendy took a one way flight back to Monroe and accompanied us back to Texas on the way home. McKenzie got carsick on both trips about 45 minutes before arriving at both destinations, so that made for some fun times! It took me much longer to clean up when I was by myself than when Aunt Wendy was there to help me change her. Wendy and I decided that we are too old to stay out partying until almost 5 o'clock in the morning, as we were exhausted on the trip back home. Our car still smells faintly of the vinegar I used to try to clean the mess up with. Ahh...the memories. The third weekend was devoted to Cindy Greenberg and Dustin Batson's wedding in New Orleans. McKenzie, Aunt Wendy, Uncle Steve, and I all flew to New Orleans for an action-packed weekend. On Saturday evening we had the rehearsal and the dinner. McKenzie was more interested in riding the "horsie" statue in Jackson Square than practicing her grand debut entrance as the flower girl. The dinner was fantastic--all 5 courses of it! Afterwards, Cindy had her lingerie shower in the courtyard of our hotel. It was alot of fun to chit-chat with all of her Long Island Jewish cousins/family. Afterwards, we hung out with Cindy and her dad...he is quite possibly the sweetest/cutest dad ever (only second to my dad of course). The wedding was absolutely beautiful and went off without a hitch. The second line through the quarter was alot of fun to be part of. At the reception, McKenzie discovered her "dancing" ability. She wouldn't leave the dancefloor and was MAD when it was time for the toasts because the music stopped. The band, Bag of Donuts, was sooo much fun. Wow! What a weekend. Check out the pictures on Anna-Marie's website: http://amweis.com/category/client-images/ Click on Greenberg wedding (I think she spelled it with a "u") The following weekend was devoted to cousin Megan's wedding in West Monroe. Mac had flower-girl duty again, and because I was standing in the back this time, she didn't do quite as well. I had to run down the aisle at the midway point and help her up to the front. She lasted through most of the ceremony before she had to get in Mamaw's lap. She couldn't wait for the reception because she knew what was coming. Once the dj cranked up the tunes, Mac wouldn't leave the dance floor. This time she learned to get her groove on all by herself. She didn't want anybody to touch her because she thought that we might pull her off of the dance floor! When it was time for the fireworks and for the Wiens to leave, she was mad that we had to go outside! I don't know the name of the photographer for this one, but hopefully someone reading can help me out. I'm sure there are lots of cute shots. The last weekend of the month I met Jake in Washington D.C. He had a work thing, so I had to entertain myself for most of the weekend. I spent my time seeing the monuments, the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Smithsonian for Natural History. Friday night, which was Jake's 28th birthday, we were treated to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse by Jake's boss. Yummo--I had the lamb chops and Jake had a massive filet! The following night, we celebrated even more by eating more than our fair share of sushi. Our waitress laughed at us for eating so much. I can't control myself when it comes to sushi! Anyway, sorry for such a long update, but it's been a while! I hope that I haven't bored ya'll to tears. My camera has been on the fritz, so until we get a new one, ya'll will just have to imagine the cute things that Mac's been up to. edit...Jamie Good shared some pictures that she took yesterday of the kiddos playing in the yard. Enjoy! 4-22-08 8:35 A.M. McKenzie is repeating the word, "snow," nonstop as she sits in my lap while I'm typing this. We just looked at her pictures, and she, just like her father, is obsessed with the snow. What have I done? Ha! Since the weather has warmed up, we have been going non-stop. We have been taking picnics to the park, swinging and sliding, and hitting up every pony ride within a fifty mile radius. Mac cannot get enough of ponies, care bears(the fruit snack as well as the stuffed animals), and the show PEEP on the learning channel. We are signed up for swimming lessons starting July 10th, so that should be fun for both Mac and me. Well, sorry the update was such a quick one, but we are off to playgroup this morning! Enjoy the pictures from the UMHB play day that was a couple of weeks ago. Thanks Aunt Wendy for the heads up on this VERY fun (and free!) thing to do! 3-15-08 1:15 P.M. As you can tell from the pictures, last night was family fun night at the circus. The night started with pepperoni pizza from Pizza Hut where McKenzie kept saying "cirtus." I'm not entirely sure that she knew what the "cirtus" was, but she surprises us all the time with what she knows. She did SO well! She watched attentively throughout the entire 2 hour show. She wasn't a fan of the cotton candy, though, which came as a big surprise to me. She's usually our resident sugar junkie. The best part of the circus according to Mac was intermission. She was in the very front of the line for the pony rides. She didn't really know at first (she was a little scared), but once she got on she didn't want to get off. As a side note, her favorite toy is C.C. (short for cotton candy), which is a rocking horse that sings "I'm a little pony, clippety-clop, clippety-clop, such a pretty pony. I like to have my coat brused underneath the old oak tree. Let's jump and run, we'll have lots of fun. Won't you come and play with me!" I have heard this little tune so many times that I find myself humming it even after I've put Mac to bed at night. In fact, she pushed the original C.C.'s ear so much that it finally broke. We have since replaced it...with 2! more because apparently rocking horses are only a seasonal (Christmas) item. Hopefully 2 ponies will get us through the stretch. Anyhow, this kind of explains her obsession with "horsies." At any rate, the ponies were the star of the show for us! Hope you enjoy the new pictures! 3-7-08 7:32 AM Jake is working nights in the Labor unit right now, and when the phone rang at 3:44 this morning, I instantly thought something was wrong or someone had died. I should have known better. Jake said, "GO LOOK OUT THE WINDOW!" Knowing what he was talking about, I rushed over and flipped on the light outside. The snow was coming down hard! Jake is a known "wish-caster" instead of an actual forecaster. Most of the time, he gets things right, but when there's a chance of extreme weather, then he always gets so excited and is overzealous. I mostly ignore him, unless he's still telling the same story RIGHT before it happens. Come on, it's hard to believe him when he's forecasting snow when it's 75 degrees outside two days before. I guess he was right this time...Enjoy the pictures. 2/29/08 Mac is a motormouth. She is talking so much more just in the past 2 weeks that it is incredible. Some of her newest words include: ice cream, yogurt, mail, pony, squeaker (referring to her squeaky shoes), cheese, shower, glasses, patch, and hello. She has new words everyday that amaze me...she's not always copying either. She just identifies things in her environment. Everyone always asks me what her weight is up to. Brace yourselves: it is a staggering 19.5 lbs! She's still very much a lightweight, but she certainly doesn't seem to notice. She is wearing 18 month clothes, but I have a hard time with fit. She's actually pretty tall (5th percentile for 2 year olds), but she just doesn't have any meat on her bones; she's our little beanpole. Since the weather has warmed up, Mac has been enjoying her swingset and her power wheels almost everyday. She wasn't quite tall enough to reach the pedal on her car, so Jake had to rig up a pedal extension for her. Now she's able to "take off." She doesn't have the whole steering thing down yet, but hey, neither do I most days! In other news, Mac is signed up for Mother's Day Out in the fall. On Thursdays starting the last week of August, she will get her first little taste of "school." They have lessons, songs, craft-time, and they help with potty training. I think it will be a good thing for both Mac and me. Okay, hope everyone's having a great day! Check out the picture page. I added a function so that you can comment on the pictures. 1-19-08 Today is the anniversary of what we called "D-day" two years ago. This was when McKenzie gave us the scare of our lives when she developed NEC. She didn't have surgery until the 23rd, but this is the actual day that she got sick. This day last year was particularly hard for me, but this year I decided that I wasn't going to allow it to get me down. Instead, Mac and I put together a basket of blankets for the babies and their families in the local NICU. We attached the following story to each blanket to hopefully serve as some sort of hope for the families:
"A Celebration of Life"
In the early morning hours of January 19, 2006, my former 27-week little girl began to show the signs of NEC. After several rounds of antibiotics to no avail, the doctors decided that she needed emergency surgery. They could give us no guarantees, but it was her only chance at survival. One special nurse told me to keep praying, and that if the battle was too hard, then my angel would give me a sign. Thankfully, no sign came that day, and she came through the surgery fighting. The surgeon removed 7 cm of her distal colon and left her with a temporary colostomy. After 91 days in the NICU, we brought our baby home! Today, she is a thriving 2 year old little girl that just moved into her "big girl bed." So instead of remembering that day as horrible and scary, we would like to share our joy with you in hopes that it brings some comfort to you and your little one.
It felt so wonderful to be able to give back to the community that gave so much to us. When McKenzie was still in the hospital, there were always little hats, shirts, and blankets being donated by different organizations and individual families. It always brought a smile to our face to be able to share these gifts with Mac, and hopefully the families there now will feel the same way.
On a completely different note, McKenzie's favorite thing to do right now is sliding her rocking horse under the couch and then trying to ride it. She then proceeds to say "STUCK!" I have tried explaining to her that she was the one that got it "stuck," but she thinks it's hilarious and continues to say it until you get her "un-stuck." The joys of being two...
12/28/07 It's been a busy month full of exciting changes for McKenzie Wynn. Probably the most monumental change was her move to a real "big girl" toddler bed. So far she has done pretty well, with the exception of the past week. She has had her annual Christmas cold and her nose has been stopped up. It's really hard to sleep when you can't breathe, so she has been getting out of her bed in the middle of the night (usually around 3 AM). We have been putting her in bed with us for a little bit, but we always end up returning her to her own bed because she is a little kicker. It's so strange to wake up to Mac standing right beside your bed staring at your face. Jake worked everyday except for Christmas eve, so we did our Christmas then. Big "C" came for a visit from the 21-24, so basically Mac got her way the entire time. Needless to say, she loves it when her grandparents are here. Some of her favorite toys this year are her Wal-mart shopping cart/food, her kitchen, and her rocking horse. Her favorite birthday presents are her new swing set and her Pinky-Pie My Little Pony. Last night we celebrated Mac's and Uncle Steve's birthday by going to Chuck E. Cheese. The pizza was wayyyyy overpriced, but a good time was had by all. We played games, ate cake, and Mac REALLY enjoyed the carousel. Please enjoy the birthday pictures! 11-26-07 8:50 A.M. It's been a rough couple of days for McKenzie Wynn. She had been running fever and not acting herself i.e. sleeping ALOT, so we were giving her advil. On Saturday night, she developed a rash and was still not feeling great. Luckily (I suppose), Jake was working that night, so I took her up to the ER. They looked at her throat and the rash and decided that she probably had strep throat. She's now on antibiotics, and will hopefully start feeling better soon. Last night we put up our Christmas tree. We had to get a larger one than last year because our ceilings are so much taller. Too bad we threw out all of the "generic" ornaments last year...oh well, we mostly decorated the front of the tree anyway. I can see that I will probably be moving some of the ones from the bottom of the tree to the top very soon. We didn't put any of the breakable ones at the bottom anyway, but rather than spend most of the day asking her not to touch, I think I'll just make it easier on myself. Warm wishes! 10-23-07 Our baby is growing into a little girl. Her days are full of chasing the dog, banging on the piano keys, and playing with her friends. One of the other mommies at playgroup made the comment today that they were looking forward to the day that they could plop food down on the high chair to let their little one have at it...I already do that! She's growing up way too fast! Next Tuesday is our Halloween play date. All of the kiddos are coming dressed in costume, and we will have themed food and fun. Mac and I are going to be pirates. We figured since she has to wear the little eye patch, we may as well embrace it. She's going to make the cutest little pirate EVER! Look for more pictures next week. Happy Halloween! 8/25/07 10:12 A.M. McKenzie Wynn has 9 teeth! 3 of her molars have finally broken through her gums, and it hasn't been without a whiney battle. Thank goodness for advil--it has been a lifesaver. The teeth have come in handy, though, because we have a little piglet on our hands. Her new trick is to bite off of whatever it is that she is eating. She much prefers this to having small pieces on her tray. Mischievous is the name of the game this week. Just yesterday, Mac discovered that there is this fun thing called dirt in the houseplants. She threw it all over the living room floor not once but twice yesterday. Needless to say the vacuum cleaner is getting a good workout around our house. Another trick is to bite daddy's leather chair. I know she's teething, but she has a dozen teething rings. Why the chair? Ahhhh...toddlerhood. Jake has been working alot lately and has come down with strep throat. He started some antibiotics on Tuesday, but they didn't seem to work. He switched to penicllin and oral steroids yesterday, so hopefully he will be feeling a little better by tomorrow. Mac and I are trying our hardest to stay as far away from him as possible because strep is the last thing that we both need. Hope everyone enjoys the new pictures of McKenzie Wynn and Jacob Good. He is our neighbor down the street and "boyfriend." 8/2/07 3:35 P.M. McKenzie has been a busy girl this past month. She is up to 18 lbs 2 ounces and is holding steady at 2 feet 4. At playgroup this week we had two other 16 month olds that are almost a head taller than our girl. It didn't seem to bother her, though, because she chased them around stealing their toys and snacks! We visited the opthomologist about two weeks ago and learned that Mac's right eye has worsened significantly. So, Dr. Adams suggested using a patch for 2 hours a day over the "good" eye to encourage her to strengthen the "bad" one by forcing her to use it. No new glasses in the meantime because toddlers' worlds are close up anyway. As far as the patch goes, she is adjusting, but still doesn't care for it. She is a little more clumsy with it on. We go back to see the eye doctor at the end of September, so we should know more then. She possibly could have more surgery, so please pray for Mac's eyes. Jake survived his first month of residency! He was on orthopedic surgery and worked 30 hours straight approximately every 3-4 days. It was no fun for any of us! I felt like a single parent, and he felt dead. Today he is starting his firt ER shift, so he should really enjoy this month. I have included some recent pictures of our house since we have finished decorating. Enjoy! 6/14/07 1:50 P.M. We have an update on Mac: she weighs 17 lbs and stands 2 feet 4 inches tall. We're still not on the growth chart for weight, but we are at the 5th percentile for height and head circumference. Dr. Warren was very kind and gentle, and after a few minutes, McKenzie warmed right up to her. She has some big shoes to fill, however, because we both loved Dr. Springer so much. I asked her if she thought McKenzie needed to be evaluated by the occupational and physical therapy team, and she thought that it wasn't necessary right now. She said that as long as she is progressing, then she is right on schedule. I can tell that Mac is more confident with her walking than even a few days ago, so progression is the name of the game. We are about a day away from finishing our bathroom. It's kind of slow going because I can only really help during the baby's naps. We're getting there, though. I'll post some "after" shots soon. 6/12/07 11:20 P.M. It has been a crazy week. Last Wednesday evening, Jake and I decided that it would be a great idea to take a sledge hammer to our birdbath-bathtub and replace it with a deeper one. It's a good thing we did because we unveiled a happy little family of termites that the home inspection didn't uncover. So after treating for termites Jake took a swing at plumbing...for two days trying to "sweat in" the same blasted 2 pipes. Finally after much convincing, we called a professional. The funny thing is that he only charged us $88 (on a Saturday)...we had spent that much money going back and forth to Lowes with plan A, plan B, etc. So, the take home message was to call the plumber first. The progress since then has been really good. It is 90% painted, and Jake will begin tiling tomorrow. I'll post pictures once it's finished. McKenzie Wynn continues to learn to walk. She impressed all of her buddies at playgroup this morning with her newfound skills. Tomorrow we will be meeting with our new pediatrician here in Temple. I am a little anxious to see how much weight she has gained. I am looking forward to the day that she can be in a forward facing carseat. I'll be back tomorrow to post the new information from the doctor's appointment. Mac says "na-na" to all...apparently that means water. Have a great day! 6-4-07 11:15 P.M. McKenzie took 8 steps today all by herself! It seems like she is getting better with each day that passes. She has to be encouraged to walk, but once she gets going she is excited to be doing it. She has the biggest grin on her face the whole time, and when she finally reaches her target, she falls into their arms. We have been clapping for her and telling her what a good job she is doing, and she claps right back. McKenzie has also learned to climb on her slide. She looks so funny trying to boost herself up, but once she gets on she's gone. She uses her hands and feet to scale the whole thing. When she makes it to the top, she's ready for help coming down. Tomorrow morning we will be hosting our first play date at our house. McKenzie is ready to share all of her toys with other little kids. I'll be sure to get some pictures of her interacting with the other little ones. Sometimes I get a little teary about what she's doing...she's my little miracle. Be sure to check out Mac's latest photo shoot at www.pattystewartphotography.com Once on the site, click on children and then McKenzie B. Enjoy! 5-22-07 11:15 P.M. This update has been a long time coming...I think subconciously I was waiting for McKenzie to start walking to update this page. I suppose you could say that she "walked" today if taking 2 steps unassisted is considered walking. I think that any day now she's going to take off running. She doesn't even fall when she tries. Instead, she squats on her knees. Someone told me once that children that wear glasses are naturally more cautious. Speaking of glasses...we aren't having too much luck with the things lately. When I do remember to put them on her, the right lens pops out. This is probably because several months ago while visiting Mamaw, McKenzie Wynn decided to throw her glasses in the path of the stroller. Mamaw, not noticing that Mac had been a little mischievous, ran over the glasses with stroller. They haven't been the same since, but it sure is entertaining to poke fun at Mamaw about her destructive ways. This past weekend, Aunt Wendy graduated from her LLM program at SMU. Mac really enjoyed eating out at the fancy restaurant and even shared her goldfish with the hungry people around her. We are all looking forward to next week when Aunt Wendy and Uncle Steve move into their new house in Temple. We will finally have family close by! There will be plenty of BBQ's, movie nights, and whatever else families do when they live close by. I guess we'll figure it out soon enough. Our playgroup here is great so far. We go every Tuesday between 9-11, and today I really seemed to connect with another mom who had 2 difficult pregnancies. It's always comforting when you can find someone that you can relate to. McKenzie Wynn is still a little unsure, but I guess that is to be expected since she has never been around little kids. I am not even sure that she knew that people came in small sizes. Jake will be graduating on Saturday. Another sigh of relief. It's been a LONG four years, and we are so proud of what our little family has accomplished. KUDOS! 3-23-07 11:30 A.M. The Brown family has been very busy lately! Last Thursday was match day, and we matched at Texas A&M in Temple, Texas. We went the weekend before and found a house that we absolutely love and instantly made an offer. Luckily the homeowners accepted it within an hour, so we had to get busy selling our house in Shreveport. Thanks to everyone who came for the Sunday work day. We appreciate everyone's hard work...we couldn't have done it without ya'll! Our Shreveport house went on the market the following day, and we accepted a full price offer the following Thursday. The inspection on this house was this past Tuesday, and we are anxiously waiting to hear the results. If all goes well, we will be closing on this house on April 11th (and moving the same day) We are VERY excited about moving to the next step in our lives. Jake will be starting his 3 year emergency medicine residency in July, and McKenzie Wynn has clearance to have playdates! It's only been a year since we came home (March 18, 2006)! I am very much looking forward to having other mom friends to share this experience with. Check out the pictures of our new house. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention...McKenzie is VERY close to walking. She can stand for about 3 seconds unassisted, so stay tuned.... 2-25-07 9:41 P.M. We had a fun time at the Tyler Zoo today! McKenzie enjoyed strolling through the exhibits and SEEING all the funny new animals. Her favorites were the ducks and the parakeets pictured above. Mom's favorite were the big monkeys that looked like skunks, while dad enjoyed seeing the hamburgers. If you're ever over in the Tyler area, I would highly recommend this zoo. It's very modern and well kept but not so big that you can't see everything in a few hours. Good luck to Aunt Wendy as she takes the Texas Bar Exam this Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday! Oh, a third squirrel went down yesterday. This was the last small one, but hopefully we'll get the big one soon. For those that have been "out of the loop," squirrels invaded our attic a few months ago, and we've been trying to retake it ever since. 2-24-07 11:05 A.M. McKenzie Wynn has a new trick. Jake has taught her to shake her head "no" when she is asked if she is a good girl. At first, she would only do it if you were shaking your head "no," but now she recognizes the phrase. It is the funniest thing because she has the biggest toothy grin while she does it. We have really enjoyed the warm weather lately. We have gone on walks everyday, and we set up McKenzie's play pen outside so that she can enjoy outside. We have started our home improvements to get ready to sell the house, so the weather has cooperated. For everyone out there keeping up with the squirrel situation in our attic, 2 have gone down this week. More updates later.
2-15-07 1:30 P.M. McKenzie Wynn said, "bah-bah" and climbed up into my daddy's lap in anticipation of her bottle! So, I think this may count as her first word! Jake is convinced that earlier in the day that she said "dada," but she definitely had meaning with the other word. I was pretty impressed. So not only is she the cutest little girl ever, she's also the smartest. McKenzie has had a little trouble sleeping lately. Dr. Springer says that she is entering a whole new phase in her development that is just as difficult to adjust to as a kid going off to college. She is starting to realize that she is the only one around that can't walk, so it bothers her somewhat. When she wakes up in the middle of the night, she "practices" walking around the perimeter of her crib. That's why we find her standing up every morning. I think she also gets a little frustrated that she can't communicate what she is thinking. Last night when she was in her high chair, she had a little fit to get down. She was finished eating, but I was still trying the airplane trick. She wasn't having it. Everybody wants to know about Mac's glasses. I think that the general public has more trouble with them than she does. I guess that they have never seen a baby as small as she is with glasses. People stare at her like crazy. There was a man yesterday at Target that passed us staring, and then he turned around and asked me if I had trouble keeping them on her. I don't mind being asked. It's not that big of a deal. I hate it when people stare and then give me the "I feel sorry for you" look. Don't feel sorry! She's a miracle, and she is so smart! Yes, she is little, but she is the strongest person that I know. Lots of love to all.
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