Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving, although it got off to a rough start!  We were supposed to have our neighbors and some other friends over for Thanksgiving dinner but had to cancel at the last minute.

Amelia had one of the roughest weeks of her life; the Sunday before, she fell and hit her nose so hard that we thought for sure it was broken.  She literally looked like she had been in a boxing match!  We took her to Urgent Care; unfortunately, there were about 30 other people there as well.  It was the sickest-looking group of kids I have ever seen!  We were super nervous about Noah and Amelia being around all the sick kids, but the staff at the front desk refused to hand out masks or call our cell phone when it was our turn.  The wait was clearly going to be over two hours; we spent a good amount of our waiting time in the car but obviously had to spend some of the time in the waiting room.  We would have just left if we weren’t so worried about Amelia’s nose.  Anyway, turns out it is almost impossible for a two-year-old to break their nose, since its mostly cartilage.  However, the doctor said it was very good that we brought her in, since there is always a risk of internal bleeding from the swelling.  So, no broken nose but we did find out that both kids had pretty severe ear infections.

Lo and behold, the next afternoon, Amelia starts showing signs of pink eye!  I had made an appointment with her ENT because she shouldn’t be having ear infections with the tubes in her ears.  A few days prior, I had seen a little blood draining from one of her ears and had taken her to her pediatrician who said they didn’t have the proper tools to see if the tube was still in place, because they couldn’t see past the dried blood.  The ENT was able to give her medicine for the pink eye but couldn’t tell if the tubes were still in place without “vacuuming” out her ear.  It is as painful as it sounds, and a team of nurses and I had to hold her down while the doctor vacuumed out her ear.  Afterwards, he still wasn’t sure it the tube was out, so we were instructed to come back in a week to check again.

I thought the worst was over, since they were both on medication for their ear infections and she had medication for pinkeye.  However, late Tuesday night Amelia started having difficulty breathing and her temperature started rising.  We checked on her all night and made an appointment first thing in the morning with her pediatrician (NO MORE URGENT CARE!!!).  Thankfully, Mike had the day off and was able to take her to the doctor.  I was worn out from taking her to so many different doctor appointments in the past three days and from getting my house ready for my mom, brother and two nephews to come, and I was happy to stay home with Noah.  Mike ended up at the doctor’s office with Amelia for over three hours.  By this point, her temperature was 103 degrees, she wasn’t breathing well, and had developed a nasty cough.  Poor baby had to get a chest x-ray and had to have a tube inserted down her nose to check for RSV.  This was especially painful because her little nose was still so swollen and black and blue from her fall.  After being checked out thoroughly, they ruled out RSV and the flu . . . but her doctor was really nervous about how bad this virus was and not being able to pin down what was making her so sick.  She prescribed a Z-pack and breathing treatments and said if her fever didn’t go down in 24 hours to take her to the ER.

By this point, it was clear we couldn’t have anyone over to our house since Amelia was so sick.  Noah was so bummed, and I felt badly about calling our neighbors to tell them we couldn’t have it here.  Well, everything worked out!  Amelia started doing better the next day (thank goodness for modern medicine!).  My neighbors had Thanksgiving dinner at their house, and we were able to go over for a little while, thanks to a video monitor on Amelia while she slept (they literally live across the street).  It was great to spend time with my mom, brother Jason and nephews.  Amelia had a hard time resting as much as she should have, because she was having so much fun with her cousins.

The kids had a blast playing out in the leaves in our backyard!  Amazing that we had a Thanksgiving where it was almost 80 degrees outside!

Amelia had already had a bath but couldn't resist jumping in when she saw Nana giving Preston a one.  My mom was soaked by the end!

Mike made an amazing Turkey and my mom helped with all the side dishes and desserts, I am so thankful for them both!

Noah set up a kids table next to the adult table; we had a second Thanksgiving meal on Friday after Jason and the boys got there.

I love my husband and I love how much he loves to cook!  He spent ALL DAY in the kitchen on Thanksgiving!

Twister Treat

This year Amelia dressed up as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, we taught her to say “Twister Treat” instead if Trick-or-Treat.  I’m pretty sure most people couldn’t hear what she said, but I thought it was funny.  I’m not even sure what to call Noah’s costume, all I can say it was very hard to look at when he had his mask on.  The kids got to go trick or treating at Mike’s office, some of the really little kids started crying hysterically when they saw Noah’s costume…thankfully their parents thought this was a funny reaction.

We went trick-or-treating with our next door neighbors, who have a little girl in second grade.  Amelia was so excited to be going out with the bigger kids; she was literally running as fast her legs would carry her, it was nearly impossible to get a picture of her.  Noah stayed out with them until close to 9:30pm and came back with a TON of candy!

This past weekend, we went camping with my good friends, Melinda, Dean and their two-year-old Clara, who happens to be Amelia’s best friend.  It was a first for both girls and overall it went really well!  We were only about ten minutes away from our house in case Amelia wasn’t going to be able to sleep in the tent but she finally went to sleep around 11pm.  The highlight of camping for all of us would probably be making s’mores, I hadn’t had one in years and boy are they delicious!

Two extra pictures I had to include, Noah reading Amelia her bedtime story and Amelia waiting for her dance class to start.

Family Photo Shoot

 Here are some of the photos from our recent family photo shoot.

Careful What You Wish For...

It might come true.  I had wanted to see the labor and delivery floor of the hospital at which I’ll be delivering the baby; I got my wish, although not in the way I had hoped.  This last Saturday I woke up feeling a bit off, like I might be coming down with something but tried to ignore it -- since we had Noah’s Boy Scout campout that night.  We had contemplated staying the night but at the last minute decided against it, since it would be Amelia’s first time camping.  I would have probably skipped the campout all together with how I was feeling. But I was in charge of leading the boys in our den through two skits at the campfire that night.  As soon as we finished our last skit, we were out of there.  I had been feeling like I was on the verge of throwing up for hours, and as soon as we got home I ran to the bathroom. 

I felt a little better and tried to go to sleep, but not 30 minutes later I woke up to horrible stomach pain.  Long story short, I spent the next nine hours straight vomiting every 20 minutes.  Around 1:30 in the morning, Mike went to sleep in the guest room, so at least one of us would be able to take care of the kids the next day.  I thought it would eventually stop but it didn’t, and around six am was feeling like I should probably go to the ER.  I decided to weigh myself since I had lost so much fluid, and I was horrified to see I had lost eight pounds.  I got Mike up; once he realized that I hadn’t stopped vomiting all night, he called our neighbors to come watch the kids so he could take me to the ER. 

After being in the ER for about an hour and getting an IV and blood tests, they decided I needed to be admitted for at least the next 24 to 48 hours.  My OB happened to be on call at the hospital, so she had me sent up to “L & D” (Labor & Delivery) so she could monitor me.  I ended up getting 9 or 10 IV bags and a constant stream of anti-nausea medicine.  I am so thankful for good friends.  Our neighbors watched the kids when we left for the ER and then my wonderful friend Melinda and her husband Dean watched the kids until I got out.  Thankfully, because I stopped vomiting, I begged my OB to let me go home and sleep in my own bed . . . I was released that evening.

Mike was amazing through everything; he was not only Super Husband, Super Dad, but also Super Nurse!  We’re still not sure what caused me to get so sick, but I am feeling better every day. 

It's a...

BOY!  We actually found out at my13-week ultra sound; the technician said that at 13 weeks, it’s only an 80% chance of being correct . . . but, she was 99% sure it was a boy.  Even though she was sure, I thought it would be best to wait and share the news until it was confirmed at my anatomy scan.  This time the technician said, “If it’s not a boy, then it has a third leg!”

I recently bought my first outfit for him (okay, four outfits), and this has made it feel so real.  We have been talking about boy names and are completely stumped.  I feel like we’ll have a son with no name his first few weeks of life.

I have been trying to get family pictures taken for four weekends in a row and, for some reason (usually the weather), we’ve had to reschedule.  Well, this past weekend I grew impatient and was worried that Amelia wouldn’t be able to wear this adorable dress I got her from Janie & Jack, because it would be too cold by the time we took pictures.  So, I got the kids dressed up and tried to take some myself.  I am NOT meant to be a photographer; especially one who takes pictures of kids… it was exhausting!  From now on, I’m going to leave it to the professionals!  I’m crossing my fingers that the weather cooperates for the session scheduled this weekend.

This one cracks me up!

I LOVE this one!

We've had a rough couple of weeks dealing with various illnesses involving Noah, Amelia and me.  After Amelia and I had a bad cold with a persistent cough for over three weeks, I decided it was time to do something.  We went to see doctors, and she was diagnosed with pneumonia, and I was diagnosed with an upper respiratory/sinus infection.  She had to get a chest X-ray; since I'm pregnant, I couldn't go in with her -- but she was such a champ and cooperated perfectly with the nurses.  If that wasn’t enough to deal with, Noah got a really bad stomach bug and was in terrible pain.  At first we thought it might be appendicitis because of the symptoms.  We spent six hours last Thursday night in the ER, and he, too, was a champ!  He had to drink this gross liquid before having a CAT scan, and he had have an IV.  I'm happy to say that we are all healthy now.  Mike has the immune system of a “super hero” and stayed healthy.  He was such a big help when I wasn't feeling well, and I'm so happy he's been staffed in town for so long!

Waiting for her X ray.

She is very proud of her sticker pumpkin she decorated!

As you can tell from the video, she is completely back to normal.

Daddy's Girl

Mike was able to work from home on Monday, and Amelia realized this wasn't the "norm" and took full advantage of her daddy being home.  She literally did not leave his side ONCE!  She set up a coloring station next to the desk in his office and sat in his lap while he was on the phone.

She is currently OBSESSED with the song "Part of your World" from the Disney movie, "The Little Mermaid."  She asks me to put it on REPEAT; sometimes we'll listen to it 20+ times (or until I feel like I'm going crazy).  Once she hears the song, she immediately wants to put on her princess dress and starts singing and dancing along.  Well, when Mike was home on Monday, she ran into his office after asking me to put the song on and told him to dance with her.  

That night when we were lying in bed, Mike said, "This was one of the best days of my life!"  He told me a quote he heard from a friend that I want share: "A son teaches you to love, a daughter teaches you to be loved."

Happy 8th Birthday Noah!

Newsflash: I’m going to blame my lack of blogging on pregnancy.  I have had a serious lack of motivation in all departments.  It’s funny to me that this is my third pregnancy, yet it feels so completely different -- so different, in fact, that I feel like I’ve never done it before.  My doctor said that each pregnancy is usually a little harder (i.e. aches, pains, nausea).  That being said, I don’t know how some women can have 10 kids or more.  Okay, enough complaining!

My amazing husband cooking me dinner, I love him in an apron!

Noah turned EIGHT!  I can’t believe how fast time goes, to think he only has ten years left until he goes to college.  My mom was able to come out for the weekend and celebrate with us.  The kids were in heaven having her around, and Amelia was her little shadow!  Noah’s birthday list had three things on it: the Lego “Black Pearl” ship, a puppet, and the Lego City police station.  Between his parents and both sets of grandparents, he got all three and was SOOOO excited!  He has seriously spent at least 18 hours building and playing Legos since he opened his presents on Sunday.   If we didn’t make him sit down to eat, I’m not sure we would see him.

When my mom and I were at Toy R Us buying Noah’s present, we saw these little miniature princess figures.  I bought a few so that Amelia would have something to open when Noah was opening his gifts.  One of them was Snow White, and it’s adorable because Amelia calls her, “Snow Wipe.”  We must have heard “Snow Wipe” about a hundred times over the weekend; she was very excited about her present.