Sunday, May 1, 2011

There goes April...

I've been neglecting the blog. Sorry, loyal readers. So I'm back with some updates...

- Nora turned 1! She's a hefty 25 lbs. She is stubbornly resisting all attempts to get her to walk. I half expect that one day she'll just take off at a run and that will be the end of crawling. She says a few words - Mama, Dada, baba (bottle), Ewwa (Ella), hi, and a few other things that sounded like words but may or may not have actually meant something. I had to trim her hair because it was in her face. That happened the day before her birthday. She looks older with her hair cut. The little bit I trimmed off is in a baggie in her baby book, along with a note with the date.

- Mia turned 3! Her check up is in May. She's getting tall. She's our cuddler, sensitive kid, and antagonist rolled into one. She adores Nora and takes care of her, but will turn around and smack Ella with a toy. I honestly don't believe she's trying to be naughty, she's just curious what will happen maybe? It keeps life interesting for sure. She has the BIGGEST appetite, but of our girls, she's probably the smallest for her age (which is still pretty high on the charts, I think). We still get lots of comments and questions about her red hair. I've even been asked if she was adopted...since red hair seems to pop up a lot when both parents have this recessive red hair trait (which honestly isn't so recessive in our family, considering Steve and I had 3 red-headed grandparents between us), I don't believe red hair is dying out. Just saying.

- Ella had her kindergarten round up appointment. How is she old enough for kindergarten?! Well, she seems old enough, but I don't feel like I'M old enough to have a kindergartener. Some days I feel like I'm actually still 17 and somehow woke up with a husband, house, three kids, and a minivan (in a good way, but there's still that feeling of "how did I get here?"). The appointment went well, she talked a ton, drew pictures, and came home with a few books and the alphabet.

- Steve got a promotion! He was help desk support and was promoted to network engineer. Normally there's a step in between - network administrator. The fact that he skipped that step shows how highly his bosses think of him and the faith they have in his abilities. He has a lot more responsibilities and a lot to learn (which means a lot of added stress), but he's up to the challenge. I'm very proud of him. :) This promotion also means a pretty big raise. Since Steve left Comcast and joined the bank about 13 months ago, his yearly income has gone up nearly $20,000. HUGE blessing! Obviously, this relieves a lot of the stress we had surrounding finances, even with the addition of a third child.

- We <3 Amoxicillin. Well, not really. I hate the 3 times a day dosing and some of the unfortunate side effects. Getting Nora to take it isn't easy either. But it does get rid of ear infections and the pain and screaming that come with them. Mia went to the doctor on Wednesday - double ear infection, bad enough that the doctor also prescribed ear numbing drops. Nora went in on Friday and she has an ear infection and the beginning of bronchitis. So both are on Amoxicillin and Mia has ear drops. Ella had a fever and a cough and threw up for about 24 hours, starting Friday night. She's finally keeping down liquids (Pedialyte for the win) but hasn't tried food yet. She did say she was hungry though, which is a good sign. The big girls have had cough syrup and all three have had some combination of Tylenol and ibuprofen for pain and fevers. We have two calendars on the fridge to track the Amoxicillin dosing and a list of who took what when. I highly recommend keeping a list if you have a kid on multiple meds or multiple kids on meds. My brain gets pretty muddled when I'm low on sleep so this method works for us. As of this morning, everyone seems to be doing somewhat better. Mia and Nora have been on meds long enough for them to take effect and Ella has stopped vomiting and has asked for juice and some food. She asked to play outside too. So Ella and Mia are out in the yard now - I figured the fresh air could only help.

- I have gallbladder issues? This may fall a bit into the TMI category - sorry, but you've been warned. I'm no stranger to issues involving gas, what with IBS and eating lots of fruits and veggies (I've heard this is an issue for other people switching to a healthier diet too). During pregnancy, it was one of many discomforts I dealt with. Normally Gas-X helps. But occasionally, I feel more bloated and uncomfortable and I start to get an ache in my shoulder. I found out a month or two ago that this could possibly be related to my gallbladder. It's an occasional thing, there doesn't seem to be a pattern to when it occurs, and I didn't think the doctor could do much unless I was in the middle of a flare-up so I figured I'd mention it when I go in for my yearly check ups. But Friday it was BAD. It happened when I took Nora in for her appointment and it was painful to sit down (pressure on my middle) or stand up straight. So I sat in a semi-reclined position and tried to hold Nora on my hip, which didn't help much. I asked a nurse about it in passing, knowing she couldn't do much without it being my appointment but she could at least tell me if I should get it checked out (yeah, I know, if I'm doubled over in pain, I should). She said I should get it checked out and asked if I still had my gallbladder. Since it didn't get better, I went to MedPlus later and the first question the nurse and doctor asked after hearing my symptoms was if I still had my gallbladder. The doctor thought I might have scar tissue on or near my gallbladder and ordered an ultrasound. Without going to the ER, I have to wait until Monday to even call to schedule it. Unfortunately I was in pain the rest of Friday night and off and on most of Saturday. I'm a bit afraid to eat because I'm not sure what's "safe" to eat and won't cause it to flare up worse. So I've had lots of bland foods and bowls of Cheerios. Steve bought more fruit last night because that's safe. Hopefully they can get me in soon to figure out the exact cause of this and do *something* to help it or shorten it.

- Fit Club ends and LIVE Turbo Kick class begins! Although both with a whimper, apparently. Second to last Fit Club was me, my wonderful sister, and my new co-teacher. Last Fit Club was just me and no one even showed up to let me in the church. Awesome. But that made it very clear to me that it had run its course. Unfortunately, Saturday morning when I dragged my hurting body (mid-gallbladder attack) out of bed and went to teach my first ever class, determined it would be awesome and I CAN work out through this, once again no one came. My lovely co-teacher came so we practiced and will advertise a bit more for this coming Saturday. I have a few people who I think can come this week that weren't able to last week (one of them being my wonderfully supportive sister) and I'm going to be more intentional about personally inviting people. I will make this class a success, even if my body seems to be determined to kill it (Seriously, the last time I was sick as the first week of Fit Club. Not sure what's up with that).

I think that's about it here. I DVR'ed the royal wedding and watched it. It was beautiful and I wish them the best. But William was much more handsome when I was in high school and I would not want to marry into all those requirements and media attention. I mean, they made her change her name. There will be pressure to "produce an heir." I much prefer my "prince" and quiet existence on this side of the pond. Well, at least once we're all healthy again. :)

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