John's Thyroid

On Feb 25th John went into the University hospital to get his thyroid taken out. It's been bugging him for years and this year we finally decided it reached a critical point. It's always annoying to me how the medical system works. We went into the doctor in September saying that he was having problems and we wanted to go through with taking it out. Of course then he is referred to a specialist which takes several months to get in, the specialist runs more tests, then he is referred to a surgeon, the surgeon sees him for less than 5 minutes and can tell he needs his thyroid out NOW! 2 weeks later he is in surgery after 6 months of waiting for appointments.

John's thyroid had 2 goiters growing on it. One side measured 10cm, the other 8cm and would go back and forth between hyper and hypo. His emotions and energy levels swung back and forth all the time. The last two weeks though he began having trouble breathing and eating. It was time to GO!

John got everything arranged at work. His mom flew in from Guam to help us out which was a great help. I think he was a bit nervous about the surgery but he was definitely anxious to get in and get that sucker out!



John ended up staying in the hospital for 26 hours. I never even got the chance to take Peter in to visit! As we were going down to visit John he started calling saying that he was checking out. I think they were just kicking him out! He had a hard time being told to stay in bed and go through all the hospital routines.

John took a week off of work but was talking like normal the day after surgery and eating burritos the moment he got home. He's such a quick healer!

He ended up with about a 2 inch cut in the center of his throat but it is healing quickly and the scar hides behind his shirts a lot.



We did end up getting a call after that his thyroid had a SMALL amount of cancer in it, but it was insignificant. It looked like the goiters were growing over it like a pearl trying to contain it! Amazing!

Ronald McDonald (video)

Our mommy group got a private tour of one of our local McDonald's recently. They set it up to try and reach out to mommy's highlighting the healthy options at Mikey D's. They also set up some special activities for the kiddos. Peter colored some pictures...


Wyatt was wide awake when we got there so he laid on a blanket on the table and just looked around at all the fun stuff in the playland.


The best thing though was that Ronald McDonald came! Peter has seen his picture of course, but never MET Ronald. He was in a trance watching him!


Peter had a new best friend! Ronald knew magic and played a ukulele and sang songs.


Peter ignored all the playland and just hung out with Ronald the entire time. I don't blame him though, he was a hilarious guy! Even us adults were chuckling.


I tried to get a picture of Ronald and Peter but try as I might Peter would not look up for a picture. He'll say cheese alright, but he'll say it to the floor or the wall or any random direction without looking at the camera.


After a while we went for a tour "behind the scenes" of McDonalds and got to see how the food was made. Wyatt went in the Moby for this part and was cuddled up falling asleep. Peter had fun visiting the big walk-in freezer..."BRRRR!!!"


Then we got FREE FOOD! Peter is now able to eat an entire Happy Meal without an allergy reaction. Yay! He usually gets a plain hamburger, apples, and juice. And of course, he always insists you order a toy! McDonald's was the first restaurant he learned. He isn't even 3 yet, but he knows those golden arches and will beg to stop whenever we drive past. Most of the time I can get away with just saying "Wave hi to McDonald's".


After our tour Wyatt laid down on the table to sleep a little more while we played around with Ronald.


We had such a great lunchtime with Ronald McDonald!

Blessed Be (video)

A little video of our baby Wyatt. Just indulge me in the sappy music and simple video of my little boy. :-)

Family of Four Photos

One week after Wyatt was born we went to get new family photos done!


The boys did really well. Peter was happy and all smiles. Wyatt even got some practice holding his head up.


Completely spontaneous picture of Daddy and Wyatt playing between the "real" shots.


Peter being "super sweet". He loved when the photographer put a stuffed frog on her head and sneezed it off. He enjoyed laughing at her!


Wyatt meanwhile couldn't "hold a pose" since he is just a little ragdoll. That's ok, it just meant that I got to hold him! He loves his momma already!


Full body shot...boy wouldn't stretch out for us. He just wanted to curl into a ball.


Wyatt in mom and dad's hands. Wyatt and Peter's baby pictures look quite a bit alike. You can definitely tell they are brothers even with their differences.

Wyatt Meets His Family

Oma & Opa came down with Peter to visit atleast once a day while we were in the hospital. I was so happy to see Peter! After barely being out of my sight for more than a few hours at a time having to go DAYS without him seemed so strange. I would watch his cartoons on the tv just to make it feel more like home.


Thankfully I had a new baby to keep me company! You forget how tiny they are when they first come out! It's fun to study him and try to figure out where his different features come from. I think he has my hands and muscular thighs.


Wyatt definitely has the Ayres lips. Opa Jim is proud of that one!


The pale eyebrows and full eyelids I think come from Oma's side.


But I think a lot of Wyatt is like his daddy. He has his dark hair and hairline, dark eyes, long and flexible toes. I'm anxious to see how alike they look as Wyatt grows.


Opa, Daddy & Wyatt


Peter was very excited to see me and came running into the room and climbed up on my bed. He has gotten fairly comfortable coming to the hospital for my appointments and loves pushing buttons in the elevator and exploring all the fun looking equipment. This time there was something NEW to see though!


I think Oma & Opa coached him a little. He seemed to understand that this was his new baby! Peter touched Wyatt's face really gently and was super nice to him.


He even wanted to hold him. Oma helped get Peter settled and handed him Wyatt.


Peter seemed so happy to be holding his new baby brother! It made my heart melt. He held him so gently and tenderly, giving him soft pets. He even kissed his head.


And I LOVE this picture of my and my two boys. Such a happy day!


I think Wyatt was getting a little tired of all the flashes though! Get used to it kid! There's lots of photos in this family!!!

Hospital Stay

We ended up staying in the hospital for 4 days. Two were labor and delivery, two were recovery and watching my blood sugars since I am diabetic. Wyatt was cleared as healthy pretty much right away. He and I both slept the days away waiting to go home.


Wyatt was officially 8 lbs, 6 oz and 21 and 3/4 inches long with a head circumferance of 34cm. All these measurements put him in the 95-100th percentile for growth. Just like Peter! I grow big, long boys!


Breastfeeding was painful and I gave Wyatt some formula so he could get fed. Come to find out he is tongue-tied and cannot extend his tongue far enough to feed properly. A pacifier has kinda been teaching him how to suck and it has gotten better. He is scheduled to get his tongue fixed on Feb 8th...we are counting the days!


Although the labor was more traumatic for me this time, the recovery has been amazingly easy! Count your blessings! Last time I remember crawling to the bathroom days later because I hurt so much. This time I was walking John down to the cafeteria just to get out of the room. I was anxious to be released so I could go out and do something!


I enjoyed my quiet evenings in the hospital though. I knew I needed to get some sleep and just enjoy the quiet for a bit.



My hospital was treating Congresswoman Giffords and several victims who had been shot in the Tucson tragedy days before. A huge memorial of flowers, candles, posters, and trinkets filled the front yard of the hospital . National news vans crowded the front entryway and extra security roamed the entire property. Every night as the sun set a different musician or group would spontaneously arrive in the courtyard and play the Star-Spangled Banner. It was very soothing and humbling the first night I heard it coming through my window and then watched as hundreds of candles lit up the night. Something I will never forget.

Update Your Browsers!!!

Update your browsers! With the new addition to our family we needed to change our web address. Our blog is now located at:

http://peterandwyatt.blogspot.com