The Anderson Family

Monday, February 18, 2013

4 Month Photos

Photos Taken In Minneapolis By Lindsay Nicole Photography

Sunday, February 10, 2013

On January 30th Colton had Craniosynostosis surgery, a condition that he was born with. The type of Craniosynostosis that Colton had was Single Suture Synostosis Sagittal. (The sagittal suture is located on the midline of the head and extends from the soft spot towards that back of the head. Because a portion of his skull was fussed his head did not properly grow from side to side. He had the appearance that was long and narrow with some forehead protrusion. To correct the problem surgery was necessary.) The operation was done at Children's Hospital in St. Paul. Two surgeons preformed the surgery. They made an incision from ear-to-ear and removed parts of the skull to correctly open it, reshape, and allow growth. It took two hours to prep his little body and two hours to preform the surgery. He was then in recovery for another hour after before we were finally able to see him. It was one of the longest and hardest days that we've gone through but everything went well. We spent four nights at the hospital, one night in the ICU. Colton recovered very well and quickly. The first couple of days were hard as he was in pain and on several strong pain killers. He also experienced sever swelling, which was expected and very common for this surgery. He couldn't open his eyes for a day or so when the swelling was at it's peak. It's so hard to see your baby in such pain and discomfort. Not being able to communicate to him or and have him able to communicate to you was the most difficult part. It was hard to know if he was in great pain or just not happy. But we made it through, everything went as expected and we are now home. Colton continues to recover well and is no longer on any pain medication a week after surgery which is amazing to me. Here are some photos of our journey...

Just before surgery

Right after surgery

ICU

Some of the worst swelling

Colton's Battle Wounds

Feeling Better

YEAH! I get to go home!

Saturday, January 26, 2013

3 months

Time is quickly flying by... between the feedings, diaper changes and playtime our day starts and finishes with not much time for anything else. The boys are doing great and growing so fast! I can't believe how big they are already. Their personalities continue to show more and more each day. It's so fun to see them smile and laugh at funny facial expressions and voices.

Henry can be a very sweet boy that can't get enough hugs and love and can make you laugh all day long. He can also demand a little more attention and loves being in the spot light. He can go from laughing and playing to screaming and crying in a matter of seconds. When he decides he wants to eat, be held, or moved to a different play spot, it needs to be now and someone better be recognizing that. :)

Colton is also very sweet and seems happy and content most of the time. He is slower to get upset and gives you sometime to react to his needs. He smiles a lot but can be on the shy side. He tends to put his hands in front of his face when he smiles at things. I recently started to read to them, Colton loves to follow along and seems to pay attention throughout the book. He likes to look at the pictures and seems to be entertained by my reading (Henry not so much).

They both sleep through the night, Henry from 8-9ish till 7-8 am. Yes, I know this is great and we are very lucky! Colton tends to sleep the same but can wake occasionally at 4 for a feeding. As of recently he has been eating 30oz a day which allows him to sleep through the night as well. Henry has been maxing out on milk for awhile now (32oz daily) which is why he has had no problem sleeping through the night. The doctor gave us the green light to introduce cereal, so soon we will be starting that.

They become more and more independent little infants each day. They bring us so much joy and we can't imagine life without either one.

Getting so BIG!

So sweet

They both enjoy sitting up (with props for now) and enjoying a different view of things.

Daddy reading to Colton

My friend Mindy was visiting from Seattle, she is pregnant with twins due this April

We love sitting on the couch

Tummy Time

The newest toy, the JUMPEROO

Henry with his favorite stuffed animal Zebra, he had a cold and Zebra made him happy

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Baptism

12/16/2012 Henry and Colton were baptized. Colton wore a gown from Grandma Joan's family that is over 100 years old. Pete was baptized in the same gown. Henry wore a gown from Grandma Francie's family. Colton's Godparents (Mark and Trianna) and Henry's Godparents (Chad and Amy) all took part in the ceremony. My nieces, Georgia and Addie, were the priest's helpers as well. Both boys were good but Colton made sure God knew he was there. It was a special day for our family.

Colton in the Anderson/Reinardy Baptism Gown

Henry in the Collignon/Full Gown

Gerogia and Addie helping Father Paul

Colton

Henry

2 Months

Time flies bye, especially when one day blends right into the next. The boys are doing great and growing to be big and strong. Henry came in the 60th plus percentile with his weight, needless to say he likes to eat! He has over doubled in size and continues to want to eat more. Colton is growing right on track, smaller then his brother but growing at more of an average pace ( he has close to doubled his birth weight). They both are responding to things... they smile at Mom and Dad and coo and caaa... it's so much fun. They now will reach for toys and grab at things. It amazes me how fast they learn things and how quickly they change. Henry has rolled over a few times from his belly to his back. Colton can stand on his legs (with help of course) and hold his head really well. I already feel like they are growing too fast, I can't believe that they are so much bigger already. They go for 4-6 hour stretches of sleep at night now, which makes the days that much more enjoyable for Mom and Dad! We are having fun with them and soaking in each day as best we can.