eventful morning

So we had an eventful morning with some firsts for more than one.

First first... Jon taught LM how to walk with her walking toy!  HOORAY!  And just 3 days ago she wouldn't even try it for her physical therapist.  But get mom to leave the house for an hour, and she'll let daddy teach her all sorts of things!

Second first... CJ played in a very very wet soccer game.  Now he's the kind of boy that hesitates to make messes and has never been puddle jumping.  So being encouraged to run through the puddles splashing water and mud everywhere, was something new to him.  Here's a little clip to show how wet the field was - and how distracted CJ was because of the water.  He's in the orange #20 jersey with the white sleeves.  The video got stopped because CD had decided to walk across the field to get to me and had stopped right in the center.  Oops.

eye muscle surgery

Friday, August 5

This morning we headed out early with CD to travel down to Primary Children's Medical Center where she was going to have eye muscle surgery.  The technical term for what was done - bilateral medial rectus recession.

on our way

Last December we had discovered that CD was getting a lazy eye.  When we took her to the eye doctor about it, he told us what she really had was called esotropia and that only surgery would fix it in her case.  What that means is that her eye did not sit straight, it was slightly turned in. This was causing double vision and in response her brain started to "turn off" the bad eye which is why it looked like a lazy eye.  So we started patching CD's "good" eye to help strengthen her "bad" eye.  Until the bad eye (her left one) was strong enough, there was no point in doing surgery.

Patching worked miracles on strengthening CD's left eye and it was determined she was ready for surgery.  We were going to a doctor here in Logan and he referred us down to PCMC to a doctor who does these surgeries all the time - Dr. Dries.

We told CD that she was going to an eye doctor to get her eyes fixed.  She isn't a fan of doctors and didn't even like having her physical exam.  She refused to put on her ID bracelet - on her wrist or ankle - so they taped it to her back.  CD did however LOVE playing toys while we waited.  Of course that was her favorite part.  She found a little microwave she especially liked.  She was given some medicine to help her relax to help with the separation too.  So she had to sit on my lap and couldn't wander for a bit.  The microwave helped with that a lot.  Then the time came for her to go back to surgery.  I carried her to the "double doors" where they then took her away.  She was upset, but not too bad thanks to a spinning toy with lights they showed her.

Then the waiting game began for Jon and I.  We got lunch, ate lunch, and waited and waited.  We actually only had to wait an hour, which wasn't too bad.  Dr. Dries came and told us that surgery went well and he was happy with the results.  We then had to wait for them to tell us that one of us could go see CD.  Of course I was the one who went.

When I got to the room to see CD, it wasn't a pretty situation.  She was waking up from her anesthesia and really struggling.  As the nurse described it, she was "thrashing around".  It turns out they called me down as soon as possible because CD was thrashing around, trying to pull the IV out of her foot, and trying to get out of bed.  So they brought me a rocking chair to sit in and I did my best to hold her and keep her from tearing out the IV.  She kept saying she wanted to go play with the toys.  If she wasn't fixated on the IV, she was fixated on getting out of there to play toys.  The pain medicine she was getting was pretty strong and helped to make her sleepy.  But she was fighting sleep so much.  Finally I got her to sleep a tiny bit and I convinced the nurse to take the IV out since she had had a couple of sips of chocolate milk.  While taking out the IV CD woke up and the fight started again.  But since the IV was out they decided to send us to the next waiting room that had a TV.  Jon could then join us at that point too.  Once in that new room I finally got her to sleep again and she had a good 15-20 minute nap on my lap.

When she woke up again, she was a different girl - although she was still very tired.  CD was no longer thrashing around and she woke up and noticed that "Princess and the Frog" was playing on the TV.  So she sat on my lap, drank ALL of her chocolate milk, and watched the movie.  At that point the nurses said we could leave.  So we got our discharge papers and instructions, and Jon headed downstairs to get her prescriptions filled.  After getting all of our things together, CD got to ride in a wagon out to the car.  She also was given sunglasses to wear to help protect her eyes from the bright sun.

still not feeling great, but on her way home

While on our drive home CD slept a little bit and ate almost a whole little box of Gold Fish crackers.  When we did get home, she finished her crackers, drank her chocolate milk, and fell asleep pretty quickly on the couch.  It had been a long, difficult day after all.

so tired

Surprisingly CD actually was interested in eating dinner, so I made her some macaroni and cheese.  She almost fell asleep at the table, but she refused to get down until her dinner was gone.  Shortly afterward she went to bed and slept wonderfully.  The next day, CD was a new girl and you never would have known she had surgery the day before!  She talked non-stop, played all day, and even ran around the house.  She was her normal, happy, crazy self - and it was good to see!

There is no patching or bandaging required for her.  She just has to have eye drops in both eyes 4 times a day for 2 weeks - something she doesn't really enjoy.  She will have a followup in a month on September 6, and then we'll see what happens from there.  But so far, so good.  ;0)  She is an amazingly tough and strong little girl!

lava hot springs

August 1-3 (no pictures because I didn't take any, my bad)

We joined my family (ALL of my family) for a camping trip at Lava Hot Springs from August 1-3.  It was like a little family reunion that was a ton of fun!  There was Grandma & Grandpa Allen, Uncle Justin & cousin Morgan, and Uncle Clint & Aunt Hilary.  And of course the 5 of us.  We camped in our "palace" tent, Clint & Hilary also slept in a tent, and Grandma & Grandpa had their trailer there.  And boy were we super glad we had a trailer...

Monday night everyone arrived around dinner time.  After a late dinner we started cleaning up.  When we were about done cleaning it started sprinkling a bit so we hurried and put everything inside the trailer and closed the windows of the tents.  Then the wind started to pick up.  So we rushed to get things safe from being blown away while the men (Justin wasn't there that night) ran to the tents to get them staked down better.  That's when the down pour started.  To say it was storming is a understatement.  It was more like a hurricane.  The clouds burst open and started dumping rain everywhere.  The wind would blow from one direction, and then suddenly switch to another direction.  Dad, Grandpa, and Clint came back drenched by the time they made sure the tents were okay - and they were only out there about 10 minutes.  They seriously looked like they had jumped in a swimming pool completely clothed.  It was bad.  Thankfully we were able to stay inside the trailer and avoid the storm.  We just kept praying that our tents and what was inside would stay dry.  Thankfully the kids weren't too bothered by the storm either.  They stayed entertained with a movie while we waited for the storm to pass.  And it did.  The winds and rain lasted about 45 minutes.  Then it was gone.  We got the men into dry clothes and checked if there was any damage done to the tents.  Thankfully our tent survived and everything inside was dry - all except one little corned that got the very bottom of Dad's sleeping bag a tiny bit wet.  Clint & Hilary's tent wasn't so lucky.  The water gathered and piled on top of their tarp that was sitting under their tent.  So a ton of water soaked up through the bottom of their tent getting everything wet.  They were able to clean it up though and were still able to sleep there.  Because of this crazy storm, we didn't get to bed until about 11pm.  That's pretty late for the kids.

Tuesday morning the kids were awake by 7am and anxious to go swimming.  The plans for the day were to spend all day at the pool.  Unfortunately the pools don't open until 11am, so we had to find things to keep them entertained until then.  We had breakfast, played at the KOA playground where we were staying, and watched the trains.  Then it was time for swimming! 

CJ's favorite part was "going on the red water slide".  It took quite a bit of convincing to get him to try it though.  We had already spent most of the day there before he tried it out.  He really enjoyed it though and went on it 4 times.  CJ also really liked wearing his life jacket and "swimming" out to the 4-feet part of the pool where he couldn't touch.  He LOVED being able to go where he wanted and being able to float and swim.

CD's favorite part was "playing in the water".  At first she was excited to go swimming.  But when we got to the pool she changed her mind.  It took awhile before we could even get her to put her feet in the water.  Then we slowly had to encourage her to go down into the water step by step.  We kept a life jacket on her most of the day.  While she was wearing the life jacket, she wouldn't go any lower than the 2nd step.  She seemed extremely nervous about the water as long as that life jacket was on.  So I took it off her and we tried again to get her in the water.  Without the life jacket we got her to go down to the 4th step all by herself - making the water a little above her waist.  Then she slowly started walking out into the pool and got as deep as her chest.  I then took her out into the 4-feet part by holding her the whole time.  She LOVED it!  She didn't quite understand the danger of the water though, so I held on tight to her the whole time.  I don't think she liked the floating sensation with the life jacket on. But once we took it off, she had a blast!

LM absolutely loved the water too!  She LOVES splashing in the water and got herself soaking wet!  It was a very long day for her, but anytime she was in the water she was happy.  We tried putting her in a floating tube, but she didn't care for it since she couldn't reach the water.  Seriously, as long as she could splash, she was happy.

After our long day of swimming (and a pizza dinner) we went to the hot pools to relax.  LM had to stay in her carseat by the side of the pool so she could sleep.  I didn't know what CJ and CD would think of the "hot" water, but we gave it a shot.  CJ slowly got in and really enjoyed it.  CD would only put her feet in and loved splashing  Grandma.  Grandma was a good sport about the whole thing too.  Dad LOVED the hot pools and spent most of his time away from us in the hottest of the pools.  It was great for his foot.  I tried it, but it was way too hot for me.  It was a good way to end our long day.

Wednesday was the end of our trip.  We had to be out of our camping site by 11am, so we spent the morning cleaning up and packing up.  Then we decided to walk the streets of Lava and do some shopping and sightseeing before leaving.  We also stopped for lunch and ice cream.  After seeing the town - which didn't take too long - we headed on our way home.

Overall we had an awesome time in Lava Hot Springs with my family.  We are hoping to make it an annual tradition.  ;0)

kids...

A conversation this morning with CD as I'm taking the sheets off my bed:

CD: "Mom, what are you doing?"
Mom: "I'm changing the sheets on my bed."
CD: "Mom, did you pee on them?"
Mom: "No CD, they are just dirty and it's time to clean them."

Silly girl.  We had to change her sheets yesterday since she had a little accident.  I guess she thought that was the only reason you have to change sheets - because you pee on them.  ;0)

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The older kids really are not a fan of their baby sister playing along with them.  So yesterday they decided to play in the front room and CJ constructed this "wall" to keep LM away from their toys.

I want to play too!

adventure at the Dr.'s office

So we had quite an adventure yesterday at the Dr.'s office.  Here's the story...

LM had a cough less than 2 weeks ago.  The cough sounded worse at night and in the morning and was tight sounding to me.  It made me nervous, so I took her in.  The Dr. said that she looked fine, but to make sure that the cough didn't turn into croup and get worse, he sent us home with some medicine (a steroid).  The cough got better and life went on.

Yesterday LM started coughing again - the same tight sounding cough.  So just to be safe I took her to the Dr. again.  Just a side note, I also took the other kids too.  At the Dr.'s office once again LM looked fine except for tiny signs of a cold (the same cold that Jon, CJ, and myself have).  The Dr. wasn't sure why her cough was sounding that way and he didn't want to send us home with more steroids, so to be safe he sent us to the lab for x-rays.  We had to get x-rays of LM's chest and neck.  Have you ever seen how babies get their chest x-rayed?  Not pleasant.  I of course did not take pictures because my hands were full trying to comfort LM and actually get the x-rays, but this is what she pretty much looked like.

photo found online - NOT our baby girl

But LM is skinnier and she was screaming like mad and fighting us so hard.  She actually got her arms behind her head and then her head was wedged up against the hard plastic sides hard enough to get red welts on the side of her head. (LM wasn't in her contraption quite as tight as shown in the picture above - probably because she was wiggling so much)

kind of hard to see, but there is a red welt on the side

I know, I know, but the story keeps going.  So the radiologist and the Dr. couldn't conclude that what was showing on the neck x-ray was okay.  There was a spot that looked a little swollen.  So to make sure that LM really was okay and that she could breathe fine and all of that, we were sent upstairs to an ENT.  He was going to stick a camera up her little nose and down her little throat to get an inside look.  So I held her on my lap with a nurses help while the Dr. did this.  Of course LM didn't like it, but it wasn't the first time she has had something stuck up her nose and down her throat - it's just been awhile.  And guess what, the ENT didn't see anything except a little sore throat.

So, the good news is that after everything our precious little girl was put through... she is just fine.  Apparently LM just has a tight sounding cough.  According to the ENT, the cough sounds tight to me, but it physically is NOT tight.  So that's a relief.  And would you know it, after all that trauma, LM was just fine and acted like her normal self once we got home.  I expected her to fall asleep in the car (which she did) and stay asleep.  But when we got home she was ready to play and eat dinner.  She is such a tough little one!

When we got home I just kept thinking, if only I wasn't such a paranoid mother, LM wouldn't have had to go through all of that.  But I guess it's better to be safe than sorry.

our camping trip

This last weekend we went camping with Grandma & Grandpa Allen.  The kids were so excited to go!  And this marked LM's first camping trip!  We had a lot of fun.  We went up Friday night and stayed until Sunday afternoon.  Of course we slept in our "palace" tent.  When using air mattresses, it's not too bad - just a bit cold.

CJ learned how to shoot a pellet gun and had amazing aim!  He loved it and did quite a bit of it.  He even tried about 4 different guns.

CD was very hesitant to get on the 4-wheeler, but once she did, that's all she wanted to do!  She kept asking everyone, "you want to go a 4-wheeler ride?".  It was cute.  She went on rides with Grandma, Grandpa, and nice long ride with Dad.

LM just enjoyed being a baby on a camping trip.  She had her first taste of plum and almost ate the entire thing!  Definitely wasn't expecting that.  Especially since she only has 2 little bottom teeth.

One of our favorite things to do while camping is to play Mexican Horseshoes.  I don't have any pictures of it, but Jon and I played a game that lasted FOREVER because we either went over our points or kept canceling each other out.  It was kind of funny.  We taught CJ how to play and he loved it!  In fact, he is in the process right now of making his own version here at home.  ;0)

Definitely a good weekend for all!

too smart...

<this conversation took place after church during the middle of the day>

CJ: "Why is dad sleeping?"
Mom: "Because he has to drive tonight during the night."
CJ: "That would mean he's going to be nocturnal."

Yes CJ, that will make him nocturnal.  ;0)

conversations

Because I absolutely LOVE this idea, I thought I would share it with everyone!

First of all, this is NOT my own original idea.  I totally stole this off of a craft blog, I just don't remember which one.  ;0)

These are "Conversation" posters for my kids.  The first one the questions are geared for a toddler, and the second for an older child.  I decided that I had to do something for the baby too, so I created my own list of firsts or milestones I could record of the baby.

Now here's the deal - I want YOU to be able to do this with your kids too!  Imagine how much fun it would be to read these responses from your child year after year.  And yes, all of these were exactly how my children responded to the questions.  So back to you... I am willing to make YOU your own child's conversation posters!  The posters are 11x14 in size, so they would be easy to frame and hang up just about anywhere in the house!

For just $7 each (plus shipping) I'll make your kids one!  All you have to do is tell me what conversation you want to use (kid, toddler, or baby), email me 3 pictures, have your child answer the questions, and I'll do the rest!  How easy!  And how CUTE!

If you are interested, email me at [email protected] and let me know how many you want and what conversations you want to use.  Then I'll email you the list of questions (which can be edited by you if you wish) and we'll go from there.


I can't wait to get mine here!  Now if only I could find some room on my walls... ;0)

zip-a-dee-do-da

Okay, so Jon's brother-in-law has built a zip line at Jon's parents house. Last year he built one that went over a pond on some of their land. This year they decided to move it to the hill side of Jon's parents house where it was closer and a bit safer. I had mixed feelings about going on it. I wasn't nervous about the height or anything - it really isn't that high up. But I was nervous to get going too fast.  And let's face, the thing is home-made.  But I finally tried it out for the first time last night. And it was fun! But would you believe I actually wanted to go faster? You control your own speed and I was having a hard time getting myself to go, especially at the beginning. I guess I'll just have to keep trying it out to get the ride how I want it. ;0)

We also got CJ to try it. We have been trying to get him to try each time one of his cousins do it. But he never has. I think because both mom and dad did it, he decided to give it a try. He was excited to go until he was all buckled up and on top of the platform to get started. He was so nervous and scared, but we wouldn't let him back out of doing it once he was all ready. We knew once we got him on it, he'd love it. And guess what? He did! He loved it and actually wanted Jon to let him go faster. You see, Jon held him by a rope and controlled all of his movements down the line. CJ can't wait to go again!

going backwards - can this thing go faster?

saying "hi" to CD watching from the safety of the yard

lift those legs - clear that brush!

there he goes!

so proud of our BRAVE boy!

faster dad!

super heroes and butterflies

Today CJ has created his own super hero - Vironeck and his sidekick, Super Dog. He has designed a costume he is ready to make - if only we had the supplies. So while playing super heroes with his pillow pet (a.k.a. Super Dog), the following conversation took place between him and CD...

CJ: "Are you going to be a bad guy or a good guy?"
CD: "I'm going to be a butterfly."
CJ: "Are you going to be a good butterfly or a bad butterfly?"
CD: "I'm going to be a happy butterfly."

If only CJ had a brother to play with instead of just sisters. At least he has his pillow pet. ;0)