A Favorite Book

Laurie has chosen a favorite book for me to read over and over and over again. I could probably read it with my eyes closed if I needed. Sometimes I am so very tired of this book and encourage someone else in the house to do the honors for me. But then, Laurie asks so sweetly, pats on the glider next to her and says, "No, only you can read it, Mommy." I melt and read "Little People, Alphabet Farm" again, knowing that too soon these days will be gone and I'll be wishing I had read it to her one more time. So for now, "The farm's a good place for an alphabet game..."

An Emergency Room Visit

Last Friday, I took Birdie back to see Dr. D for fever and complaining about her ear.  No big surprise, she had another ear infection.  We received antibiotics and went on our way.  For a day or so, she seemed to be better.  Then Monday, she was lethargic and quiet.  She watched tv and fell asleep on the couch in just her t-shirt and undies.  

After Brian came home and went out for a run, I realized it was getting late and needed to wake her up.  When I touched her, I immediately became concerned.  She was Hot!  Scary hot.  I grabbed the temporal thermometer and took her temperature - 107.1!  Terrified, my mind thought that has to be wrong.  So I took it again and again.  Then ran for the ear thermometer and took it also.  The lowest temperature I got was 106.9.  The highest was 107.3.  

I quickly got two wet washcloths and put them on Birdie to bring down her fever, then gave her some ibuprofen.  It was a scary 30 minutes before her fever came down below 103.  She was completely out of it, crying that her head hurt and shaking. 

Once I saw her fever was coming down, I called Dr. D.  The answering service seemed very concerned when I told them why I was calling, so they had me hold and got Dr. D. immediately on the line.  She is a wonderful calm pediatrician advising me to take her straight to the emergency room to be checked out.   Dr. D even called ahead to let them know I was bring Laurie in to them.

About that time, Brian got in from his run, so I left with Birdie.  Brian showered and drove the other kids over to my mom.  My dad was headed home from work, so he met me at the ER.  By this time, her fever was under 102 and she was more alert, but still lethargic. 

Soon after Brian got to the ER, we were called back for her examination.  At this point, I got a little irritated.  The nurse suggested I read the thermometer wrong.  That maybe it was 101.7 instead of 107.1.  Seriously?  You don't think I know how to read a thermometer?  And that I took it a dozen times!  Looking back, I probably should have taken the thermometers with me so they could see the high temperatures in the memory for themselves.

We got settled in a room and the long waiting started.  The ER pediatrician and nurses were very nice and accommodating for the many hours we were there.  They ran several tests on Birdie to check for bacteria, white blood count, and her kidney function.  When the ibuprofen wore off, her fever spiked quickly back up over 103. They redosed her with Tylenol and it went back down.  She fell asleep again while Brian and I sat and watched.  

All the tests came back within normal limits and her fever was under 101 after the latest medication.  The only thing that the doctor was concerned about was her hemoglobin count being low, showing anemia.  I quickly explained that she might have beta thalassemia minor, like Ashley and I, which would make her be anemic.  Her tests for thalessemia done at 10 months were inconclusive and we haven't had her retested.

Overall, we were there about 6 hours and everyone was very nice and accomadating.  Dr. D has found no specific reason for her crazy high fever, even while on antibiotics.  I am very thankful that the fever didn't harm Birdie and she recovered quickly. 

Small Sucesses (9)

It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that. (From F&F Live)

1. Made a real dinner last night instead of something quick and easy out of a box. Its Summer, so I've been slacking when it comes to good dinners, but last night, I made a huge mess in the kitchen and got lots of compliments from Brian and the kids.

2. Spent many, many hours steam cleaning my tile on Monday. I'm only about 1/2 way done, but so far, it looks good.

3. Dropped everything I was doing several times this week to read a book to my youngest each time she asked.

Happy Birthday Dad

Happy Birthday Dad!

Hope you had a Great Day!

Another Sewing Project Completed

I finished a halter top for Ashley today. Very cute, if I may say so myself.

A few months ago, I made each of the kids their own pajama pants. This week, I finally got around to decorating a shirt for each of them to match the pants. The girls' shirts also have a rhinestone flower on their letter.

Pretty Princess

Our youngest was finally interested in dressing up as a princess this week. Her sister and brother helped her choose all the perfect dresses and accessories for the royal ball.

What a pretty Princess

What a Mess!

This week, I brought all of the kids games and puzzles downstairs to the dining room. Then I went through their rooms and found 2 bags full of puzzle and game pieces in drawers, under beds, on the floor. Wow, what a mess!

The kids were great about helping me sort all of the games and puzzles. Even Laurie could put the right puzzle piece in the correct box. She was so cute about it, getting angry when Daniel touched one of "her" puzzles.

After a few days, we got it all organized and put away. Minus a few items that will be dropped off at Goodwill and the kids will never miss.

Storytime Laughter

While going through our huge stack of library books (we have 44 checked out currently) a few nights ago, I selected a book called "Old MacNoah had an Ark" by Sally Lloyd-Jones to read to Daniel and Laurie. It started out cute, the story of Noah's ark but to the tune of "Old MacDonald had a Farm". They were enjoying it, saying the animal sounds along with me and singing the ee-i-ee-i-o.

Then, to my surprise, I turned the page and read -

"And on that ark they had some lunch, Ee-i-ee-i-o. With a Burp! Slurp! here and a Burp! Slurp! there..."

Now, they thought that was really funny. Lots of laughing. Then we turned the page again and read -

"And on that ark it got quite smelly, Ee-i-ee-i-o. With a POO! POO! here and a POO! POO! there...."

What? The kids were dying laughing and I was stunned. Seriously? Potty humor in my Noah's Ark book? But the kids were just hysterical and Brian had looked up from his book smiling. It was actually pretty funny. They've been singing it constantly with Ashley reading the pages to them. I will admit, I even took a video of them singing it together.

It was a really cute book. And Daniel has decided it is now his favorite.

Small Successes (8)

It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that. (From F&F Live)

1. For the second week in a row I refused to turn on my computer all day Sunday, even though we'd been out of town the previous 2 days and I really really wanted to check my email.

2. I am proud that my husband and I were able to get away for a few days without the kids. We are firm believers that it is necessary in a marriage to spend time alone together to stay connected as a couple. Our children are very fortunate to have wonderful grandparents who love to spend a few days spoiling them. I am confident that these getaway weekends for the kids are something they will always remember and look back with great fondness as they tell their own children what a wonderful time they had at GrandMommy & GrandDaddy's house.

3. I managed to keep up my routine of cleaning and laundry on Monday. And the kids and I did a really good job cleaning together. We sorted puzzles and games, they brought me their laundry and emptied the garbages. Ashley even helped me clean my bathroom after she did her own.

Small Successes (7)

It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that. (From F&F Live)

1. I didn't turn on my computer on Sunday. It was nice to focus solely on the family and be "unplugged" for a day.

2. After 2 weeks of being sick and lazy, I went back to yoga twice this week. And I reluctantly started watching what I eat again. While I love eating ice cream, french fries and swiss cake roles, it just isn't worth how it made me feel.

3. During this last week, when my sister hasn't been able to post to our shared pro-life, faith centered, conservative political blog, Of Sound Mind and Spirit, I have written 10 blog posts! I'm really proud of that since there are times when I can't find the time to write one in a week. Some are posted and some will be posted in the upcoming days.

It's funny, I was noticing on the Faith and Family Live website that they are up to Small Successes #25, and I'm only on #7. Oops, guess I missed a few Thursdays.

Sewing Projects

I've been working on finishing up some sewing projects these last few weeks. Here are a few pictures of my latest projects.

A superhero cape I made for my nephew's birthday. You can see pictures of him wearing it on Leah's blog. Thanks to my friend Suzie for the pattern and the idea.

A John Deere dress for Laurie

For Laurie

Halter dress for Ashley

Dress for Laurie

Top for Ashley

Dress for Laurie

Dress for Laurie

Dress for me

Ashley's dress in the same style as Laurie but different material

The one I am most proud of -

a Barbie dress I made with Ashley.

Still more Sickness!

After my previous post, Summer of Sickness, I really was thinking we were out of the woods for illness this Summer. Well, I spoke too soon. We woke up the next day with Ashley throwing up. I debated calling Dr. D for a few hours, then finally gave in and called. You know you're in trouble when the nurse answering the phone remembers your kids have a problem with strep and have you come in off schedule for a rapid strep test. Quickly, we threw clothes on (yes, it was 11 a.m. and we were still in our pj's) and ran up to the Dr. After a quick test, it was strep again!

As I was discussing our misfortune with the nurse, a lightbulb went off in my head. I don't know if I was diligent about throwing away or sterilizing toothbrushes during Ashley's last two bouts with strep this Summer. Uh Oh! Wow, do I feel stupid. But, that might be a really simple fix versus the alternatie to Ashley having a low immunity or something really wrong with her.

So, I came home and rounded up ALL the toothbrushes. And as you can see from the picture above, we have way too many toothbrushes in our house for just 5 people. No sterilizing this time around, they all went into the garbage. Next, I'm tackling washing all the sheets, and cleaning doorknobs and lightswitches. I'm going to lick this sickness bug before Summer is over!

Poolside & Popsicles

I just love this picture! It sums up our Summer!

Father's Day

Father's Day this year was kept pretty low key at our house. We spent the day hanging out by the pool, grilling hamburgers and watching a movie. Brian told me he thought it was a great way to spend Father's Day - together!

Sharks Out of the Water

Would you believe that our swim team season has already ended? It went by so fast, a big whirlwind of heat, water, friends, goggles, sunscreen, pizza and ice cream.

Daniel missed the first meet due to his broken arm, but was able to swim in the other 4 meets. The coach warned me that it might take him a few weeks to get back in the groove of swimming, but I was so sure he would get the cast off and swim like Michael Phelps. Guess who was right? Not I.

Daniel improved over the few weeks left of the season, but never quite caught his last season's best time. Trust me, it bothered me a whole lot more than him. He really didn't care. He was just happy to be back in the water and swimming.

Ashley had a great season. She had a huge improvement to start the year and worked really hard to find her stroke rhythm. One of the big surprises for her was her getting to swim Butterfly in 2 meets. I didn't even know that she knew the stroke! It was a great experience for her since not that many 7-8 yr old girls were swimming fly.

Once Daniel got the cast off, we had a semi-private swim lesson with our coach. Surprisingly, he told me I have a couple of backstrokers on my hands. Guess all those swim lessons so many years ago at HSC for their "Float Test" are paying off.

Ashley reminded me several times throughout the season that swimming was all about "having fun" and she was having FUN! How can you argue with that?

If you look closely, you can see a little of the boy's cast in the picture.

My little Sharks can't wait till next season!