Glad this is over

I don't think you ever understand how becoming a parent can change your life.  Not in a bad way.  I just never imagined that when one of my baby hurts I will hurt along with him.   

Tee was born 4 weeks early.  He had complications after birth.  His blood sugar levels were really low and his platelet counts were dangerously low.  He was being given formula to increase the blood sugar levels and his platelet counts were done every day.  They were creeping up but no where near what they should be.  Later we would find out that I had positive platelets and Tee had negative so we had to wait until his could reproduce and mine where out of his system.  Scary stuff especially when the sent us to a blood cancer Doc. 

With these issues, Tee would have to wait until he could be circumcised.  When he was a couple of months old, I was finally given the go ahead and made the appointment.  I talked the office into doing IT on my first visit.  They wanted me to have a consult and then come back all because of insurance purposes.  Yes, I was probably a little hormonally charged. 

The Doc comes in and takes a look.  And after I hear about the insurance issues I will likely cause he started getting prepped.  My dilemma, do I stay in or do I walk away and come to him to comfort when it is all over.  Well, there would be no one in the room except the Doc so there was no way I could leave.  I stayed in the room over my baby's head and tried to comfort him as much as I could.  He cried all the way home and I just felt terrible.  I knew it had to be done (it was our choice but we did want him to be like his brothers) and there was no way it would be right for my husband to take him.  

A few months ago, we noticed that Tee was snoring.  The snoring concerned us because Jay used to snore a lot like that.  We knew Tee had big tonsils just like Jay but it didn't necessarily mean they would have to come out like Jay's did.  

I took him to an ENT doc who confirmed via x-ray that his adenoids were 2 times larger than they should be.  He also tested him for strep, he had just finished the medication for strep.  The Doc made a suggestion of trying nose spray to see if we could reduce the size of the adenoids.  I guess I had gone in with the fact that he was going to have surgery and the Doc sensed that.  Tee did end up having strep again.

I scheduled surgery but there was still this little bit of doubt about whether we were doing the right thing.  During this time he had an ear infection but I didn't know until he had his pre-op appt.  He had only complained a few times about his ear hurting. 

Yesterday was the day.  He was so brave and didn't complain.  Of course, having the itouch helped.  It wasn't until I picked him up to take him to the OR that he started to get nervous.  He hugged me tight and would not let go.  I stayed while he was given the gas to get him to go to sleep.  He did well but towards the end he started fighting it.  At this point he was facing me and the nurse helped me keep his head up.  It didn't take long until he was out.  I will never forget how he looked when I left him.  As soon as I got him on the table they escorted me out to the waiting room. 

The Doc came out after the 40 minute surgery.  He said he did great, the tonsils were huge as were the adenoids.  He also split open his ear drum to let the fluid drain.  I mentioned his ear infection and he took a look before he went into surgery.  He ended up adding this to the paperwork and said he would look at it when he was in there.  It was good to hear confirmation that we made the right decision.

A few minutes later we were taken back to recovery.  Tee was crying.  It is so hard to see him in such discomfort.  I ended up holding him and after crying on and off for a while he finally fell asleep.  He woke up after an hour or so.  He was able to eat a Popsicle and drink some juice.  We were then sent on our way. 

He has been doing ok since he has been home.  I know it hurts.  He doesn't like his pain medication taste so that has been a challenge.  But loves the shakes I make him.  We are hoping and praying that he recovers quickly.  I hate to see him in such pain.

Easter 2011

It wouldn't be Easter without dying and decorating eggs.  The boys had fun and really took their time.

The boys were anxiously waiting the go to get to their baskets.

Scoping it all out.

The Easter bunny was sneaky this year and hid the eggs in the basement.

Emptying the goodies out of the eggs and eating a little on the way.

The boys decided to leave carrots out for the bunny.  How cute!  The bunny must have been hungry. 

We had a nice day.  We went to church in the morning and spent the afternoon working in the yard/garage.  It was a really nice day except we did have storms roll through in the late afternoon.

E had asked a question recently about if the Easter bunny was a real person or not.  My husband's response was it is an Easter bunny.  I had an indication that would not be the last question we would receive.  So I spoke to my husband before and went though what I would say.

Sure enough a few days before Easter, Jay asked me if the Easter bunny was real or if his Dad and I filled his basket.  I asked him what he thought and his response was that it was us.  Iasked him if he really wanted to know and he said yes.  So I admitted it.  What I wasn't ready for was the Santa question.  He did ask and E blurted out that of course Santa was real.  That was my cue that E was definitely not ready to know.  I told Jay that he had to believe in order to get gifts. 

I did ask where this was coming from and Jay said that his friend told him. Darn friend.  But at the same time they are 9 and I really don't want them being made fun of by their friends.

I have threatened both boys that if they ruin this for Tee that would be in so much trouble.  It would be the end of it for them.  They have had a good 9 years and Tee has about another 5. 

I am a little sad that they know the truth, it just confirms that they are growing up.  It is going by way too fast.

Opening day

Baseball season is in full swing.  E and Jay have games on Wednesdays and Sundays with practices on Fridays and so far many Tuesdays.  As of now they have lost 2 games and won 1.

The Coach and his boys!

Jay pitching!

E playing second base....maybe.

The boys play well and seem to enjoy playing most of the time.  I think E tends to get a little anxious and decides he doesn't like baseball.  But as always he ends up doing fine.

They have played for the head coach for many years now.  I have really liked him and thought he has done a really good job with the kids.  I am really struggling with liking him this year.  I do realize he has invested a lot of time with the kids and wants to win but we are dealing with 8 and 9 year olds.  He tends to send emails after the games attacking the kids.  I could go on and on but I won't.  I hope it will get better.

Tee has started t-ball.  He has been so excited about playing.  He has been so upset when his practice/games get canceled, which has happened twice now.  His t-ball is on Thursdays and Saturdays.  Nice how it works out with E and Jays schedule. 



Tee in uniform.

Practicing batting!

Tee has a few boys on his team that are also in his preschool class.  It makes it a lot of fun for him.  He really seems to want to play t-ball.  Once I tell him it is time to start getting dressed for his game, he immediately runs upstairs and starts.  Maybe he will follow in his brother's footsteps.

13 years of blissful marriage

13 years ago today we said our "I dos" in front of family and friends. It is funny how I still remember the day. It was one of the best days of my life.

We have been so blessed during the last 13 years. We have a great life with great kids.

A few years ago my husband forgot our anniversary (and me, I will never let him forget that he forgot.) He will claim he did not forget because he remembered the morning of. But he did not plan a thing....so in my eyes he forgot. It was a good thing I had a sitter lined up so we could celebrate our day.

This year the husband planned a night away for us. He booked a night at a B&B in Annapolis and got the sitter (our niece) lined up along with a reservation at a restaurant.

The rain tried to dampen our night away. It rained for most of the day with just a few breaks. Our B&B was near the harbor which was flooded. We had to drive down a one way street to get to the place. To get to dinner we had to drive up and around, but it was so worth it. Dinner was spectacular.

It was a nice night away. It is always nice to have a little peace and quiet just for a little bit. Sunday we got home around noon and jumped right back into the normal Sunday routine.

Tonight I was greeted with a dozen roses. And in turn I made a semi homemade pizza for dinner.

Looking forward to the next 13 years.....

What?

Sometimes I don't feel like I belong in the current century. Maybe I would have done better living long ago. Probably not too long ago, don't know how well I would do without the modern conveniences of today. I would need to be in the computer age, otherwise, I would not be able to blog.

Alright maybe I do belong where I am but sometimes I feel like an old fashioned parent. I got an email on Thursday evening from the father of one of the kids in Tee's class. Tee and this boy get along really well and have had a play date. I know the father from preschool. He sometimes drops the child off. The Mom is a doctor, he is a lawyer and they have a nanny. I know them all.

Anyway back to the email. The email asked if Tee could go to their house on Friday evening for a sleepover. I had to read the email twice and then had to have my husband read it also. REALLY???? A sleepover at 4 years old. I could not help but laugh.

My response was heck no I am not letting my 4 year old sleepover...maybe come over for a few hours to play but he will be back in his bed here with his family. No not really. I told the Dad thanks but that we don't do sleepovers. My other two boys are 9 and they just had their first sleepover this year. He has about another 5 years before I will even talk about it.

I am that out of it or am I old fashioned?

Text me

E and Jay have a friend who has older brothers. So their friend learns much from his brothers and shares with E and Jay. We often say that Tee is going to be that boy. You know the boy.......who teaches others things that makes Mom cringe.

OK, so back to the subject. I am friends with this Mom. I get to hear stories about the goings on of pre-teens/teens. Both of her older boys have cell phones with texting. Her rule is that she must read all texts. So every evening or sooner if need be she scrolls through and reads. She doesn't read every text but skims them all to make sure they are appropriate. They know she can get a report at any time so there is no cheating.

So the younger brother got text free on his itouch. And of course shared with Jay on how he could get it. Jay asked begged us to let him get it on his itouch. After much discussion between Dad and I, we decided that maybe it is ok.

My thought process. They can only text at home because they have to be connected to our network. They will only be able to text me, their Dad, and they each have a friend that has it on their itouch. Lastly,this is the beginning where it is understood that I get to read ALL of their text from here on out. So when they do get older and have a cell phone with text, nothing will change.

Smart thinking right??? Well, time will tell.

Trust your instincts

I finally remembered to call the Pediatrician on Friday to determine what I needed to do to get Jay's sleep study results. A message was taken and I had to wait for a return call.

The call came Friday evening around 8pm. She mentioned there were a few items of note. He has been diagnosed with Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PLMD). The measurement should be less than 5 and he was at 50. Yes, I would say that would be cause for concern. His limb movement could very well be waking him up during the night. It was also noted that, at times, his breaths are not as heavy. This is not a huge concern as he remained at least at 95% oxygenation level. He has already had his adenoids removed so not sure anything could be done.

We have a meeting with the sleep Dr. in a few weeks to discuss the results in more detail. We hope that she will be able to provide us some direction on the PLMD. Of course, we have googled and read articles on this topic.

We do not like the idea of medicating but we may not have a choice. I imagine that this has been going on for years. I think he needs a good night's sleep. I assume that he has just adjusted to functioning even though he is tired.

I am a little upset with myself for not pushing for the sleep study earlier. I knew something didn't seem right. My husband said even after he had a consultation with the sleep Dr. he felt like maybe we were over exaggerating. All questions the sleep Dr. asked Jay were answered with "nos."

We had no idea what we would find out and if there would be anything we could even do about it. I have to tell you that I am glad we finally know what is going on and can start to solve this problem.

It makes me so sad thinking of this situation. I know he will be ok but......

Ingrained on my mind is to always trust my instinct and push and advocate for my kids.

A good night's sleep

It has been about two years now that Jay has been waking up in the middle of the night. Yes, every night he wakes up at some point, sometimes more than once. There are times when he falls back to sleep easily and other not so much.There is also no sleeping in for him. He is up by 6am just about every day.

When he would wake up, he would go use the bathroom. I thought he was waking up because he had to use the bathroom. So being as smart as I am, I made a deal with him. If he would NOT get up to use the bathroom, I would let him have the much wanted sleep over. It took him a while but he did it. What I found was that he was still waking up just not going to the bathroom.

I did finally let Jay have a sleep over with his friend. He enjoyed it a lot, but they were both up really early, like 5:30 early.

There are many times when Jay comes to wake me up because he is having a hard time going back to sleep. My answer is always the same, read a book for a little while until you get tired and can fall asleep. Many times I am still have asleep while talking with him.

Some days Jay just seems so tired and has the attitude to match. I think it is unfair that he can not get a good night's sleep every night. I spoke with his Dr. two years ago about his wakings, but again I thought it was more of a bathroom issue than anything else. She dismissed it. So when I went for this year's exam, I mentioned it again. I explained the situation and how long it has been going on.

Honestly, I don't ever remember waking up during the middle of the night. I was a fairly heavy sleeper and still am most nights (you know when I don't wake up in the middle of the night for no reason and then can't fall back to sleep.)

With a referral from his Dr. we decided to have another sleep study done on Jay. I am not really sure what it will tell us or what we will do about it but I just feel like we need to at least try to determine what is going on.

Friday evening, Dad and Jay packed up to go on their overnight. He was very anxious about the sleep study. They arrived after 8:30 and it took about 30 minutes to get him all wired up.
Looks comfortable?

Can you guess what this is a picture of?

Yep, this is where Dad got to sleep. Talk about comfortable.

Jay was up at 1am, 3am and at 5am for the day. Needless to say neither one of them got a good night's sleep.

His Dr. should have his results sometime this week. So I am hoping to be able to make an appointment to see what it says.