Outpatient Labs

So, after procrastinating for a week, I finally took Addie today for the first of three repeat labs.

It has been an incredibly insane kind of day and by the time I signed Addie in for her labs and Chris and I sat down in the waiting room chairs, I started to get a little nervous.

I think it was a combination of the headache that just wouldn't go away, the craziness of the day and the fact that I knew Addie was nervous.

I started telling her yesterday that she was going to the doctor to get a boo-boo shot.

I didn't know how else to make sure that she understood...

I reminded her this morning when I dropped her off at school and we talked about it on the way out to the car when I picked her up.

When the nurse called her name, she started walking towards the door with her baby clutched tight to her chest and when she saw the other patients, she started to panic.

I took her into the room and did my best to reassure her.

Thank God in heaven that we had an amazing nurse, because she was sweet enough to talk to Addie.

When the nurse started to put her gloves on, Addie started to cry, never letting go of her baby.

Addie cried and started saying, "Mommy?", "Daddy?" and then she started crying even harder and ask for...Julien.

It was pretty pitiful.

The nurse - was amazing - and only had to stick Addie once and she was so incredibly sweet to her.

She let Addie pick out her boo-boo band-aid and another sweet nurse brought in a basket of stickers for Addie to choose from.

...and then, Addie thanked them...

and I can't say enough about the nurse, she told Addie that she did such a great job, she walked us back to the door, all the while giving encouragement to Addie.

It was such a nice relief to have a nurse be so sincerely compassionate.

Now we'll see if I can manage to keep our next appointment on Monday.

A Cryin' Shame

My best friend had to take her geriatric kitty to the groomers.

Poor kitty had some matted fur on her chest and was in need of a good trimming and brushing.

When my friend called to check on kitty, she was told by the well-informed tech that answered the phone that Girlfriend the Kitty was ready to go home.

The tech stated that Girlfriend did well, there was no need to sedate her and they didn't have to shave her.

All good news.

My best friends husband picked up Girlfriend, took her home and when he released her from her cage, this is what his wondering eyes beheld.

Apparently, the definition of "trim" and "shave" somehow got construed.

I now never have to wonder again what was hidden under all that fur...and Girlfriend appears to be thoroughly enjoying her new found nudity...

(You can pause the music over to the right)

Rio Movie Night

Trenton's Birthday Party was centered around Rio on the big screen.

After opening presents, the movie began.

Addie loved watching everyone

and she kept a very close eye on the cake.

She must have asked me 100 times on the way to the party, if there would be "Cake?".

I told her that if for some odd reason, Trenton didn't have a cake, we would stop at Publix on the way home and get her a piece of cake.

Thank goodness, Dewana and Ronnie saved us a trip to Publix!

One of the party favors was a parrot kite!

How cool is that!?

Now, we just have to wait for a windy day to try it out.

The little ones all had animal hats...

and there was even a Monkey for my little Monkey.

Ronnie made cotton candy.

Addie sat next to me and alternated between her popcorn, cotton candy and cake and ice cream.

I was certain she would never sleep again!

After the movie, it was time to say our goodbye's.

Sweet lovin's

and several "Thank you's" later, we were on our way back home.

Happy 5th Birthday Sweet Trenton!

Post-Op Follow-Up

We saw Dr. Davis today for Addie's two week follow-up.

Her right ear looks great.

Her left ear has made improvement but is still not healed - according to Dr. Davis, "it's not as angry looking as it was...".

We go back in six weeks unless we need him before that.

Addie "talked" the entire time we were there!

From the time we walked through the door until we left, she had something to say about everything.

I'm pretty sure everybody within a five mile radius heard her because she has yet to find her inside voice.

We had a lot of time to waste while waiting for our turn to see the doctor.

At one point Addie had my phone and when I took it back from her, there was an error message that stated:

 "This message failed to be sent.  Your IT administrator has blocked this content."

....there is no telling what degree of embarrassment that firewall managed to save me from.

While we were waiting...

She sat in the big girl chair all by herself and admired her pretty bracelet from Jamaica that Dewana gave to her.  

Some words, like "hi" and of course, "Momma", she can say perfectly!

She wanted my phone back and was trying to get down, which meant she was about to trip over the foot rest...so much for a good video showing off her sweet little voice!
(you can pause the music over to the right)

Happy 5th Birthday Trenton!

We love birthday parties and this birthday party was very special!

Trenton - our Valentine's Baby - turned FIVE!

He was very, very proud!

CAKE - Addie spotted it as soon as we walked in!

Dewana decided that we would sing "Happy Birthday" and open presents as soon as everyone arrived.

That's my kind of party!

It took a few minutes for Addie to warm up to everyone.

Everybody is always so kind to us, making us feel right at home!

Look at his sweet face!

It's tough work blowing out all those candles!

Yay!

Birthday King!

Check him out - showing everybody how old he is!

Wrapping Up Valentine's Day 2012

One of Addie's friends was ready for her to join everyone else.

However, Addie still had her attention very much focused on the ice cream.

Next came the tattoos

and a few minutes of dancing!

Addie had a really fun time!

One last picture with Miss Gill and Miss Morgan before we finally called it a day.

When we got in the car, Addie asked, "home?".

I reassured her that it was time to go home.

Except that I forgot that we had to detour by the pediatricians office to pick up something.

Chris and I were talking when we pulled into the parking lot, but I saw Addie's attention turn to the building looming in front of us.

She was at a complete loss for words, so instead of trying to talk, she started waving her hand in order to get my attention.

When I looked at her, she pointed at the building and had a very concerned look on her face.

She was desperately trying to figure out how we went from going "home" to sitting in the parking lot at the doctors office.

From the time Chris got out of the car until he got back into the car, she never took her eyes off the front door.

I'm not sure what she was expecting to happen, but she was beyond relieved when we finally pulled out of the parking lot and headed home.

Addie is very observant and very perceptive.

Two qualities that I love about her.

Pausing For a Very Special Announcement...

In the midst of all the craziness this past week, Chris and I celebrated our anniversary.

I was looking through the album and this picture is still one of my very favorites from that day.

It was freezing cold the night of our wedding.

The reception was lasting a little longer than Julien would like.

He walked up to me and with the most pitiful little face - ever - asked me if he could go outside and play.

:)

It is one of those moments that I will remember forever.

...and no, he was not allowed to go outside and play.  

Happy (belated) Anniversary to my husband!

Valentine's Party....Continued

When I walked into Addie's class, I could tell she still didn't feel well, but that didn't stop her from having a wonderful time with her friends!

We both needed a nice long nap!

They had ice cream sundaes, root beer floats, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts...and cheese crackers!

Addie was very dedicated.

High-Class

It's President's Day, so I gave my housekeeper and Nanny the day off.

It's late in the evening, my house is a wreck and I can't even begin to think about bed until I'm finished with one more load of clothes.

It's not a full moon, but it might as well be.

I'm going to forgo the lovely details that I usually take the time to type and give you my high-class version of the story.

Addie's lab work (that was drawn during her surgery), came back all jacked up.

Sigh.

That means that it all has to be repeated.

Crap!

I mean really - Crap!

Dr. Dudgeon - whom I have intentionally failed to mention lately because it seems like every time I mention him, he somehow manages to have fewer and fewer available appointments - which is great for him...and all of you, but not for me...and I'm an awfully selfish person sometimes - called to deliver the fabulous news this afternoon.

Why can't I ever get a call from Ed McMahon or Whidbey Island Travel Bureau or someone who is giving me an obnoxious amount of money or a fabulous free trip somewhere - with no strings attached?

My sweet Baby Girl is just fine - I'm not doubting for a second that the labs are just jacked up and a repeat will erase any concerns.

It's just scheduling and getting through the process all over again that I'm not looking forward to.

I'm just so thankful for this life we have, even with the little curve balls thrown our way.
...and I'm thankful for a pediatrician that has been with us each step of the way...

In the Words of Sheldon the Great...

"What kind of fresh hell is this?"

Leave it up to my Baby Boy to feel the need to learn this lesson the hard way.

I had warned him, but....

~~~

We got home from a blissful night out on the town.

Julien was in the process of sharpening one of his knives, so before I stepped into the shower, I gently reminded him of the safety rules relating to knife sharpening.

I got out of the shower, had just sat Addie on my bed, all snuggled in her pajamas and ready for bed, when I hear the dreaded, 

"Ooooohhhhhh Mom, Oh no....MOM!!!!!!!"

I grabbed Addie, walked into Julien's room and when I saw him holding his hand in a towel, I turned around, took Addie back in our room with Chris and went back to check on Julien.

There was blood everywhere...the floor (carpet - great!) and all over Julien.

I looked at his finger, wrapped his hand tighter, went back to my room, threw on some clothes and made sure that Julien was ready to go.

As we were pulling out of the garage I asked Julien why on earth he couldn't have sliced his finger open while I was still dressed with make-up on instead of me being thrown together with wet hair and no make-up - CRAP!

When we walked into the E.R., the lady was nice enough to tell us that there was going to be "a wait"...like I had other options at 9:30 at night.

Since Julien was bleeding, we didn't have a long wait in the fungus incrusted waiting room, but the wait itself was incredibly obnoxious and I knew I couldn't get out of this one with just a band-aid and pain meds.

Julien did great, but was understandably nervous about the upcoming shot to numb his finger.

Just as we heard someone in a nearby room start to vomit uncontrollably, the PA walked in to patch Julien up.

I thanked him profusely.

Eight brutal shots of lidocaine later, life was better.

After 4 hours and 3 minutes, we left with one tetanus shot, five stitches, a weeks supply of oral antibiotics and a clearer understanding that not every lesson in life has to be learned the hard way.

Circa 1950

For Valentine's Day, Addie's class decided to have a 1950's dance party.

I couldn't help myself and a few clicks of a mouse later, this outfit was on the way to my house:

I always wanted a poodle skirt and now I have one...I'm just too big to wear it.

Sigh...

Addie was having a really rough morning.
She was still very drowsy and not feeling well and had she not had her big party at school, I would have stayed at home with her.

I felt really, really bad leaving her at school, but I knew she would be well taken care of and enjoy her day.

You can't see it, but there is a big sequined "M" on her jacket.

Everybody asked me what the "M" stood for and I quickly replied, "Mae Mae", "What else would it be?"....instead of saying, "heck, I don't know, it just happened to be the only toddler sized letterman jacket I could find!".

Just go with it...

Update

Holy Cow...
Addie has been so chatty these last two days!
She is in an amazing mood and just so happy.
We knew she didn't feel well and we knew the infection was awful, but to see such a drastic change in her behavior is amazing!
Our sweet Addie is back!
...now if we could just get her to stop being so chatty at around 8:oo p.m. and go to sleep!

A Tough Recovery Made Better

Last summer, I made a corner of Addie's room into her "reading"/quiet area.

I put x-large cutouts of the characters from Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? along the wall, a large mirror, and a memory foam mattress covered in her favorite sheets and covered in her favorite pillows.

When I'm putting away clothes in her room, she loves to sit in her corner and read and look at all the characters.

So, on the way home from the hospital, I asked Chris if he would bring down the mattress and bedding from her reading area and put it in the living room to make her more comfortable and so that I could keep a close watch on her.

Once I got her changed and cleaned up, she didn't hesitate to crawl onto her "napper" and close her eyes.

She would have been a lot happier had:
 1. She not been throwing up every few minutes.
2. Had I not snapped a picture of her just as she was starting to fall back to sleep.

Since Monday, that has been her go to place.

I think she is still tired from the surgery and she has spent a lot of time resting.

Although she can't tell us, I think bringing down her napper made her feel really special.

When Julien got home from school, he immediately crawled in next to Addie (despite my request for him to change out of his nasty, germ infested school clothes first).

He can be really sweet when he wants to be. 

Addie has been really chatty since last night!

Laura (special education teacher) emailed me today to let me know that Addie was really chatty and when we got home tonight, Addie "talked" non-stop until she finally fell asleep!

I think she can hear - without everything sounding muffled - and she is loving the sound of her own voice!

That is definite progress!!!

Surgery Day - Number Five

It was different this time.

We were literally the first ones through the door at 5:30.

It was quiet.

There were not tons of doctors and nurses walking around with hats, gloves and masks on.

Our wait was extremely brief before being called back to the room.

I talked to Addie, telling her what was happening each step of the way and I made sure to keep the mood as light as possible.
Addie didn't get upset, but in an effort to keep her from getting too stressed, I went ahead and asked for Versed.
She took the medicine from the nurse this time and sat quietly while we talked to each new person that walked into the room.

She was all snuggled with me in a warm blanket.

We took a few minutes to try the hat on E.R. Baby

E.R. Baby was an amazing patient too!

Addie remained calm until the anesthesiologist came to get her and when I went to put her in his arms, she started to cry.

It's never easy to smile while reassuring her in situations like this, but I knew that within minutes, she would be fast asleep.

Addie got an IV this time because her pediatrician ordered labs and also because the plan was to administer as much fluids as possible before we left. 

On the way into recovery, the nurse told us that Addie was adamant that she wanted her "Momma".

She said that Addie held out her hands to every person that
 walked through the door  and was crying for me.

I know she was so confused and scared!

Addie did well, but was agitated and seemed really bothered by the IV.

I had warned the anesthesiologist and nurses about the possibility of Addie getting sick from the anesthesia.

They proactively decided to forgo the narcotics and give Addie extra fluids and a shot of Zofran.

When I was getting Addie dressed, I told the nurse that I really thought Addie was going to be sick.

From the look on Addie's face, I could just tell.

The nurse reassured me that she was fine because of the Zofran and the fluids...and I clearly know nothing because I'm just a Mom...

I got Addie in her car seat and then sat next to her.

We pulled away and didn't even make it halfway across the parking lot before she started throwing up.

Once the first round was under control, I dialed Dr. Davis' office and within about 60 seconds, they had another Rx called in for Addie.

~~~

When I talked to Dr. Davis' nurse today, she reassured me that next time, I would have every Rx I could possibly need before we left.

Don't get me wrong, the entire staff was amazing and so sweet to us, but if I look you in the eyes and tell you that something is wrong with my daughter, don't second guess me and don't try to make my life any more complicated than it already is.

Also, I don't know at what point we will see an audiologist to check Addie's hearing.

Dr. Davis said that our follow up in two weeks would be way too soon to check.

There is a little part of me that is worried, but I know we are in good hands.

February 13, 2012