I couldn't decide if I should take Lilly to the Dr today or not. She was better than yesterday, but her lungs still sounded terrible. I decided it would be a good idea to have her checked out, plus I had questions about how/when to intervene, with which medications, etc. So, I drive to Monticello--we used to Dr. there when we lived in Becker, and I really like my Dr. Plus, I am not a fan of change, so I keep going there. Well, here is why I keep going. He listens to her and determines that she has pneumonia. He gives a prescription for steroids and antibiotics (she also had a very red ear and thick, green goop coming out of her nose). He then writes down "The Plan", which I appreciated very much. He allows me to use my judgement and not run her into the Dr everytime she has the sniffles. In fact, according to "The Plan", he doesn't need to see her until we have tried all of the neb and medications. I looove this! So, it keeps me coming, driving 45 minutes one-way for a Dr. appointment. Because I am allowed to use my judgment, because he doesn't freak out over every little thing--which only feeds into my neurotic anxieties, and because he will dispense reasonable advice (through his nurse) over the phone.
Lilly is napping right now, and she still sounds just gross. Her lungs are full of crud, and the nebs she has been taking are loosening up her lungs, so her coughs are gunky and really wet. But, at least now they are productive. We will be nebbing her for the rest of the winter, and it sounds like we will have to start up again in the fall to avoid these respiratory meltdowns.
So, I will end up having a 4-day weekend, although I have enough paperwork left over to have me work at least 6 hours this weekend. Oh, well...I hope Lilly starts feeling better soon, this stuff has been lingering for awhile, and she has been somewhat irritable lately. Hopefully, once she is feeling better, she will be back to herself.
Hope you all stay warm, it is supposed to be chilly this weekend. Is it bad that I have raging Spring Fever already?????
Friday, January 23, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Oh, the crud...
I am home from work today with Lilly, who has her first major bout of "the crud" this winter. When she was a teeny baby (2 mos) she had a pretty bad case of RSV. She didn't need to go to the hospital, although I was given the list of instructions of "if she does...., bring her in", "if she doesn't do ...., bring her in". That was in March. Later that fall, she got RSV/bronciolitis (you say potato, I say po-tah-to). She has since had a very sensitive respiratory system. Last fall (fall 2007), though, things really escalated, and every cold she would catch would manifest itself into full-blown respiratory distress--high respirations, fever, really, really tight lungs, etc. So, for the entire winter last year, she was on 2x/day nebs, which once we got that going, really kept things under control. So far, this year has been pretty good, but today is just horrible! Ed had to pick her up yesterday from daycare because she had 102.5 fever, and all day today she has been at least 100. Her cough is so moist and gunky, and she sometimes has a rattle in her throat. I brought her to work to have one of our nurses take a look at her (our Dr. is out today), and she is in tough shape, poor girl. Hopefully, the 4x/day nebs will kick in and she can begin to breathe. If not, we will be visiting the Dr. tomorrow.
So, I am trying to work from home, which is the beauty of my job. I have so much documentation, home programs, etc, that need to get done. It is great to have the entire afternoon, uninterrupted (Lil is napping, boys are at school). I only have about 45 minutes left, though, before the boys come home.
I feel bad for Lilly, and I was really hoping this winter would be better. I know things could be so much worse, there are children who are so much sicker than Lil. But, she has a pretty high chance of having asthma, and every time she experiences this, I would imagine her chances just keep going up. I just wonder how much is related to the RSV, I would guess it is. She also had meconium when she was born, and she was full of gunk as a brand-new baby. The first few weeks after she was born, we called her "snorty snort-face" because she was always snorting on the gunk she had in her nose.
I am being a bit of a drama queen (yes, I have been known to over-react a time or two...). But, that is just where this drama queen is at today.
Thankfully, though, that stomach flu I had has not made the rounds in our house. I am knocking on wood even as I type this.
Otherwise, things around here are pretty status-quo. Ed is getting his tax stuff ready, and I'm sure will be pretty busy very soon. Cameron is done with karate, much to his dismay. I am open to having him keep going with it, but I would like a bit of a break from it (traveling every Friday night to Sartell is getting OLD!). He will take it here in CS when they offer it through community Ed., and if he is really serious about it, we will start it up in the fall. They have programs at the karate school where you pay a pretty big amount of money (thank God for monthly installments :-)), and you go until you get your red, purple, or black belt--depending on the belt you choose. It is kind of cool, because no matter how long it takes you, it is the same price. But, wow, that would be a big commitment, and it is likely the black belt program would take well over 5 years. I don't know that Cameron is that committed to it yet. But, I sure felt bad for him, he is pretty sad that it is done!
Well, I'd better go so I can get a few things done for work before the boys get home. Stay healthy! And, enjoy this beautiful day (sunny, 30 degrees!!!!)
So, I am trying to work from home, which is the beauty of my job. I have so much documentation, home programs, etc, that need to get done. It is great to have the entire afternoon, uninterrupted (Lil is napping, boys are at school). I only have about 45 minutes left, though, before the boys come home.
I feel bad for Lilly, and I was really hoping this winter would be better. I know things could be so much worse, there are children who are so much sicker than Lil. But, she has a pretty high chance of having asthma, and every time she experiences this, I would imagine her chances just keep going up. I just wonder how much is related to the RSV, I would guess it is. She also had meconium when she was born, and she was full of gunk as a brand-new baby. The first few weeks after she was born, we called her "snorty snort-face" because she was always snorting on the gunk she had in her nose.
I am being a bit of a drama queen (yes, I have been known to over-react a time or two...). But, that is just where this drama queen is at today.
Thankfully, though, that stomach flu I had has not made the rounds in our house. I am knocking on wood even as I type this.
Otherwise, things around here are pretty status-quo. Ed is getting his tax stuff ready, and I'm sure will be pretty busy very soon. Cameron is done with karate, much to his dismay. I am open to having him keep going with it, but I would like a bit of a break from it (traveling every Friday night to Sartell is getting OLD!). He will take it here in CS when they offer it through community Ed., and if he is really serious about it, we will start it up in the fall. They have programs at the karate school where you pay a pretty big amount of money (thank God for monthly installments :-)), and you go until you get your red, purple, or black belt--depending on the belt you choose. It is kind of cool, because no matter how long it takes you, it is the same price. But, wow, that would be a big commitment, and it is likely the black belt program would take well over 5 years. I don't know that Cameron is that committed to it yet. But, I sure felt bad for him, he is pretty sad that it is done!
Well, I'd better go so I can get a few things done for work before the boys get home. Stay healthy! And, enjoy this beautiful day (sunny, 30 degrees!!!!)
Thursday, January 15, 2009
My Playlist has the right idea
When I am at work, I often listen to my playlist at playlist.com while I am doing paperwork. It is the coolest site. It allows you to pull any music onto your own playlist, and play it off of the website. It is totally free! Anyway, I was attempting to get at my stack of paperwork today and I began my playlist. I always play it on shuffle (I love surprises!!!). The first song was "Here Comes the Sun", (Beatles), the second was "Beautiful Day" (U2), and the third was "Walkin' on Sunshine" (my personal, and all-time favorite song...really, my anthem). Hmmmm, nice to think about during this oh-so-lovely cold snap we are experiencing. At least we have next week to look forward to--highs in the 20's have never sounded so tropical!
I was fortunate enough to have another round of the stomach flu earlier this week. You know, I made it through the past two winters without getting nailed, and now, this winter...bam. Twice in 6 weeks. Thankfully, though, this bug was a somewhat vicious, but fast-moving, 24-hour bug, unlike the week of ups and downs I had in early December. When you have 3 kids, the misery of the stomach flu isn't isolated to the misery you alone experience. The worry about having 3 vomiting kids, most likely on 3 different days, lingers for quite some time. So far, though, everyone is still healthy. I am beginning to wonder if I didn't eat something that made me sick. I can hope...
The boys are settled into their school routine, and have adjusted pretty well to getting back into the swing of things. Cameron is still taking karate, and he recently received a yellow stripe for his white belt. He was absolutely beaming when he got it (did I already write about this?). Alex is in Boy Scouts, and is getting ready for the Pinewood Derby, an event where they make their own car out of a block of pine and race them. He has also joined choir at church, and is really excited about that. That boy has musical talent, he is spot-on with his rhythm, and he has a beautiful voice. I hope he enjoys choir, because I think he certainly has the knack for it.
Lilly has been escalating with tantrums as of late, and I am hoping she is testing her boundaries a bit and not feeling under the weather. There has been lots of screaming, "I don't want to's", and even some throwing! Very unlike her.
I am struggling with trying to motivate myself to exercise regularly. I had done pretty well over the past couple of years, but within the past 6 months or so, I have really let things slide. Not only could I lose some weight, but I feel so much better when i am exercising. I know once I get over the hump, I will be hooked on it and will look forward to my nightly exercise, but oooohhhhhh, is it hard to get there!
I am also participating, once again, in the UCP stationary bike race, a indoor bike event that raises money for the Central MN chapter of United Cerebral Palsy. I team up with a buddy of mine that I work with at SPOT, an almost-11 year old boy with CP. He and I have worked together since he was 15 months old, and he is such a great kid. He cheers me on during my 20 minutes of pedaling my tush off, and then, we go out for pizza--to completely offset any calories I would have burned during the race :-)
Well, I'm off to bed, it has been a long week, and I am still catching up from when I was sick. I should have taken one day off of work, but I didn't--I went home early on Monday, and was back Tuesday morning. I could have used another day to rest, but that's what the weekend is for, right?
Stay warm!!!
I was fortunate enough to have another round of the stomach flu earlier this week. You know, I made it through the past two winters without getting nailed, and now, this winter...bam. Twice in 6 weeks. Thankfully, though, this bug was a somewhat vicious, but fast-moving, 24-hour bug, unlike the week of ups and downs I had in early December. When you have 3 kids, the misery of the stomach flu isn't isolated to the misery you alone experience. The worry about having 3 vomiting kids, most likely on 3 different days, lingers for quite some time. So far, though, everyone is still healthy. I am beginning to wonder if I didn't eat something that made me sick. I can hope...
The boys are settled into their school routine, and have adjusted pretty well to getting back into the swing of things. Cameron is still taking karate, and he recently received a yellow stripe for his white belt. He was absolutely beaming when he got it (did I already write about this?). Alex is in Boy Scouts, and is getting ready for the Pinewood Derby, an event where they make their own car out of a block of pine and race them. He has also joined choir at church, and is really excited about that. That boy has musical talent, he is spot-on with his rhythm, and he has a beautiful voice. I hope he enjoys choir, because I think he certainly has the knack for it.
Lilly has been escalating with tantrums as of late, and I am hoping she is testing her boundaries a bit and not feeling under the weather. There has been lots of screaming, "I don't want to's", and even some throwing! Very unlike her.
I am struggling with trying to motivate myself to exercise regularly. I had done pretty well over the past couple of years, but within the past 6 months or so, I have really let things slide. Not only could I lose some weight, but I feel so much better when i am exercising. I know once I get over the hump, I will be hooked on it and will look forward to my nightly exercise, but oooohhhhhh, is it hard to get there!
I am also participating, once again, in the UCP stationary bike race, a indoor bike event that raises money for the Central MN chapter of United Cerebral Palsy. I team up with a buddy of mine that I work with at SPOT, an almost-11 year old boy with CP. He and I have worked together since he was 15 months old, and he is such a great kid. He cheers me on during my 20 minutes of pedaling my tush off, and then, we go out for pizza--to completely offset any calories I would have burned during the race :-)
Well, I'm off to bed, it has been a long week, and I am still catching up from when I was sick. I should have taken one day off of work, but I didn't--I went home early on Monday, and was back Tuesday morning. I could have used another day to rest, but that's what the weekend is for, right?
Stay warm!!!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Finally...a minute
It has been so busy around here, as I'm sure it has been for most everyone. I posted pictures from Christmas and Alex's birthday. We had a very nice Christmas. There is so much joy watching the kids open their gifts from Santa, I'm not sure who loves it more, Ed and I or the kids! They got lots of nice toys from Santa and were very happy Christmas morning. On Christmas Eve, we went to Ed's extended family's Christmas. There is always a ton of food and kids to play with. We headed home, and had no trouble putting the kids to bed that night.
On Christmas night, we went to my mom's family's Christmas. That, too, is a big family with lots of great-grandchildren that are the same ages as my kids. We ate a lot and visited a lot. It is so nice to have our families close by to share the holidays with. It is also nice to have large extended families so that our kids can experience the large gatherings. Ed's side of the family is getting pretty big (almost 30 people), but my side is still pretty small (just 16), so our kids don't have the same experiences I did--gatherings with 50+ people at every holiday.
The weekend after Christmas, we headed up to Fergus Falls in the icy weather to spend the weekend with the Holens. It was, also, a lot of fun. There are a ton of boys in that family, so it gets a little rowdy, but Doug and Kim have a nice big farmhouse and a lot of outdoor space for the boys to burn off that energy!
We took our two nieces home with us, who are 14 and 12 and they spent Sunday-Thursday with us. It was fun having them around, and they were a lot of help with the house and with the kids. It was nice to be able to go out and run errands by myself, since the girls watched the kids for me. On New Year's Eve, Doug and Kim came down and spent the night with us. We had a lot of fun. Our collective 9 (yes, 9) kids all made it well past midnight, and we finally put them to bed around 1 am.
We also celebrated Alex's 9th birthday on the 30th. He had a great birthday, according to him. I took the day off (I only worked M and F last week), and I took down the Christmas decorations while the kids took it easy at home. We had cake and presents, and Alex was very excited to have received Guitar Hero III. I was excited, too, and have since been seeing green, red, and yellow notes coming at me in my sleep. For Christmas, Alex also received SingStar for the Play Station, so between our rockin' guitar game and our singing game, we will have a family of rock stars in the near future :-) It is hard for me to believe that Alex is already nine. It doesn't seem like that long ago when Ed and I were not parents. And I can remember vividly the first few days after Alex was born. How can it have already been nine years? I hope the next nine years don't fly by as fast as the first nine did, because then Alex will be 18, and will be an "adult"--I know I sure thought I was an adult at 18, but really, it takes a few years after 18 to really grow into an adult.
I am looking forward to life settling down a bit. The holidays and the kids' birthdays are a lot of fun, but it sure gets to be a lot of activity. I have the house almost all clean, so tomorrow, I can sit back and watch the Vikings win (fingers crossed), and finish reading my book. Then, it's back to the grind, for which I am actually a bit excited.
Hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Christmas and New Year!
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