What We've Been Up To...

We are still trying to recover from the Great Sickness of 2010.  My voice is slowly, but surely, returning, although I think Mike was starting to like my whisper voice.  Adam is still not feeling great.  We switched anitbiotics so hopefully that helps.  He is not eating or drinking much at all and has had lots of diarrhea.  But enough about our icky sicknesses...

Last night Mike took Owen to a Hershey Bears game.  Nana Way and I were supposed to go along and my mom was going to watch Adam, but we decided it would be best if Adam and I stayed home.  So Owen asked his buddy, Aiden, and his daddy if they wanted to go.  They had an awesome time and their seats were right up against the glass!!  Mike took some pictures with his iPhone.

Today Papa and Finny kindly took Owen for the morning since Adam is still not feeling great.  I feel like we have been neglecting poor Owen since Adam has been so sick.  He's watched WAY too much TV.  I think we might go on a TV strike over the holidays.

This afternoon Owen played the guitar for his brother. 

What do you do with a nook that has ugly paint, curtains, wall paper, and a hideous light fixture?

You cover it with Christmas cards.

And let your three year old decorate it with all of his artwork and stickers :)

This evening Owen announced that he had a big boogie he had to get out of his nose.  I told him to get a tissue, but he must have thought his finger worked better.  When I walked into our dining room I caught him looking at his boogie through his magnifying glass!  I had to quickly grab my camera and take a picture.... priceless and such a BOY!  Looks like it was a very interesting booger.

Tonight I realized that Christmas will be here in just 4 days and we have a ton of Christmas books that we still have not read.  So Owen and I snuggled up on the couch and I tried hard to read, however my voice would not really cooperate.  We'll try again tomorrow night to get through some more.

Another blogger, Clover Lane,  wrote this wonderful post about capturing your children's "Sparkly Eyes" especially during the busy Christmas season.  I have to remind myself this time of year to stop and take it all in. Our boys will only be little for a short time and the holidays are so much fun with little ones :)

105.5

That's what Adam's temperature was last night.  I thought he was turning the corner during the day, but then the afternoon and evening hit and he was the sickest he's ever been.  It was very scary to say the least.  It was around 2am until the large dose of ibuprofen the doctor told us to give him kicked in and broke his fever.  He's been fever free all day, but still not feeling that great.  He threw up twice and has had diarrhea all day and is barely eating or drinking.  He's fussy and clingy, but has moments of smiles and playfulness.  Poor baby. 

I am still without a voice although I think it is starting to come back.  I can talk, however it comes out as a monotone shout and people think I am yelling at them.  I don't have anything between a whisper and a shouting voice.

I am not sure if we will be back to the doctor tomorrow or not.  I am hoping the next post I write is about how all of us are feeling 100% better and ready for a happy, healthy Christmas!

Pssssssssstttttttttt!

All I want for Christmas is my voice.  I have been without a voice since Thursday night and when I sit and think about it for long enough, I start to panic that it won't ever come back.  Which might not be that big of a deal if I did not have a three year old and a ten month old.  I think if my family hears one more "Pssssssst!" out of me they might hit me.  When I want their attention, I either clap really loud or say "Psssssst!"  Mike especially likes it!  :)  When Owen is doing something he shouldn't, like running into the living room to dive on the couch with a face covered in spaghetti sauce, I clap really loud to get his attention to come back to get his face wiped.

The worst part in this whole sickness thing that overtook our family was Adam.  He had a temperature of 103.5 yesterday afternoon.  Thankfully I had taken him to the doctor after my doctor appointment that morning where I learned I had bronchitis, laryngitis, and sinusitis.  Taking him to the dr was interesting without a voice.  At first they probably thought I was just a really quiet, soft spoken mom, until they figured out I was just sick.  Adam has an ear infection and a cough. 

Yesterday was horrible and scary.  Adam's fever was so high he would just lay on us like a wet noodle, grunting and moaning.  We were prepared at any moment to take him to the ER, although I am not sure what they would do.

Today Adam is feeling better.  I can tell because his is playing, getting into things he shouldn't, and starting to smile again.

It was hard not seeing him smile at all yesterday.  He's still not 100%, but his fever has gone down (for now) and I think the antibiotics are starting to work.  Thank the Lord.  And thank goodness for our family.  My dad came over yesterday to sit with the boys while I went to the doctor.  Mike's mom picked up some massive quantities of Clorox wipes for us from the store and her Advent gift to Owen was a VERY long movie about a soccer dog which could not have come at a better time.  My mom picked Owen up today so he could go over and play and get out of the house for a while.... he was very excited and so were we!  And Finny just dropped off the most amazing filling and chicken noodle soup and I am trying hard not to gorge myself right now. 

My husband, however, is the real superman in all of this.  He took a half day of work yesterday and picked up lunch for all of us.  He took such good care of Adam and I.  Whenever a sickness goes through our house he turns into a cleaning and sanitizing madman.  He sanitized all the toys, cleaned all the carpets and hardwood floors even pulling out the couches to get underneath them, cleaned out the pellet stove, did the dishes, got all these healthy vitamin drinks at the grocery store, and so much more I can't even think of right now.  Funny story about the healthy drinks... he got these drinks that were originally made to give essential vitamins, minerals, and energy to chemotherapy patients.  I asked him before I tried one if they had any caffeine in them and he said they did not.  They taste pretty bad, but I sucked it up.  Finally, at 1am, I still had not fallen asleep so I came down to check the label, and sure enough, they have a LOT of caffeine in them.  I only fell asleep at 2am.

Most of all, Mike snuggled and cuddled Adam and tried to make him as comfy as he could while making sure to continuously check his temp and give him his medicine on time .  He let me sleep and got up with him whenever he cried.  What a great guy :)

Maybe I spoke too soon about Adam feeling better, he just had diarrhea.  Better go!

I will end this post with a picture that I took last week before The Great Sickness of 2010 hit us .  Probably should have saved it for a Wordless Wednesday. 

Still Sick

Owen is almost finished with his antibiotics for his ear infection and his cough is still the same.... not good.  In fact, Monday and Tuesday night he was up for over an hour coughing.  We tried everything to make it stop, but felt pretty helpless.  Then I did what they tell you not to do, but most parents do anyway, I started looking on the Internet for what could be causing this dry cough that he has had for about 4 months.  Well by the time I was finished "researching" I was pretty much convinced he had Cystic Fibrosis and I was a wreck for the past two days.  I called the doctor today and they decided to try him on reflux medicine.  Mike was also getting worried so he called the doctor himself and felt reassured after talking to the nurse that the chances of him having CF are very rare.  I had my sister worried too, however she talked to some other nurses and even a doctor at Johns Hopkins and they do not think he has CF.  He has had a clear chest X-ray and is gaining weight and growing.  Plus, his cough is dry and non-productive.  CF children have a very productive, mucusy cough.  I felt a little better after hearing that, but I am still concerned.  I have a lot of respect for parents of sick kids... I don't know how they do it.

I have some sort of chest cold, bronchitis thing going on.  I can barely talk and my throat is sore.  Then, tonight, we went over to Aunt Judy and Uncle Boo's for a little while (and thinking back it was probably not the best idea) and when we got home, I was giving Adam a bottle and he felt warm.  I took his temperature and it was 102.5!  It has never been that high, ever.

So all plans are off for the weekend.  Tomorrow, I was planning on taking the boys to see Santa at Park City and then to the Choo Choo Barn since you get in free with a canned good, but we are going to be hanging out here at home and possibly going back to the doctor.  The Christmas cocktail party Mike and I were supposed to go to won't be happening either.  Hopefully by next week we are all feeling better!

Reason # 1,362...

Reason #1,362 why I LOVE being on extended maternity leave...

We can enjoy playdates and outings with friends during the day and avoid the crowds.

Monday we met Jill, Jason, Crystal and their kids at the Hershey Historical Society to check out their train display.  We took Owen last year and he really enjoyed it and it's only $1!  The track is interactive and the kids really liked pushing all the buttons to see what would happen.

Owen was annoyed with me because I wanted to take his picture and he wanted to play- hence the forced cheese look

Owen and C chatting about what they were going to get at Chocolate World.  C was telling Owen he was going to get a milkshake and Owen was telling him he did not like milkshakes.

 

After the trains, we headed over to Chocolate World.  We rode the ride, had some lunch, and hung out in the food court area.  As I said before, it was not crowded at all and that made it nice because the kids could wander around as long as we could see them.

This house was made entirely out of candy!

After Chocolate World Adam had an appointment to get his second flu shot.  Owen had a little cold and was complaining Sunday that his ear hurt and Monday morning he was coughing so I scheduled an appointment for him too.  It turns out Owen has an ear infection in his left ear.  As for the cough, it is going on 4 months that he has had this cough.  We have tried everything:  chest X-ray, Claritin, Nubulizer, putting away all stuffed animals, and adding humidity to the house.  If this round of antibiotics does not stop his cough, which I am doubtful it will, we are going to try an antacid to see if it is reflux related. Adam, on the other hand, has pink eye and is on drops.  His eye was a little red Monday morning, but it got a lot worse as the day went on.  So we're pretty much falling apart!  I am just hoping the boys did not share their yucky germs with our friends!

After the doctor we went to the grocery store and the pharmacy.  I was feeling quite exhausted by the end of all that.

Adam is 10 Months Old!

 Dear Adam,

You are 10 months old today!  It's hard to believe I have started planning your first birthday party.  I can't believe in two short months you will be 1 year old.  It's very bitter sweet.

Here's what you are up to at 10 months old...

-  You are eating so much better!  You eat a mixture of baby food and finger foods.

-  You have 7 teeth.  4 on top and 3 on the bottom.  You are drooling like crazy and have been a little fussy lately so I'm pretty sure you are getting more teeth.  You LOVE when I give you an ice cube to chew on in your teether net.

-  You are such a snuggly baby. Sometimes when I am gone for a little while and come home I can tell you missed me because you hug me so tightly and give me lots of kisses.
-  You took your first, unassisted baby steps a few weeks ago, but have not done it again.  You are so close to walking on your own!  You like to practice walking by holding onto one of our fingers.
-  You are sleeping better.  Most nights you wake up around 4:30 or 5am.  Sometimes you go back to sleep for a little while and sometimes you are ready to be awake.
-  You like to play Patty-Cake and Peek-a-Boo.  
-  You still enjoy carrying things around in your mouth.  It is so funny!

-  You have a very long mullet/tale, but sometimes it gets curly and looks so cute.  I just can't bring myself to cut it.
-  You are very headstrong and when you want something you will let us know!  You've been known to throw a few tantrums.  You throw your head back and hit the floor.
-  You love Elmo and like to watch Sesame Street.  I was so careful about not letting Owen watch TV when he was your age.  It's funny how things change!

-  You say "Mum Mum" all the time.  You also say "ba" and you are now saying "Dada"!'

Happy 10 month birthday sweet boy!
Love,
Mommy

Owen Playing

This is the video I took the other night of Owen playing. He did not realize I was watching/videoing him.  It is long and will be boring for most people.  Even Mike was bored.  I think in a few years we'll like looking back at simple things like him playing independently.  He does a couple funny things, like lay his head in the rice.
Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Rambling

Two nights ago I needed to find something to occupy Owen since we had an hour until the Polar Express movie was coming on.  Adam was already in bed, Mike was watching hockey and I had things to do.  I put a few cups of rice on a pan and told Owen to pick out some trucks and he was occupied for 55 wonderful minutes!!!!  I got the idea from another blogger, but she used beans.  I did not have beans, but I had rice and although it got a little messy, it was completely worth it.  In fact, Owen was so engrossed in what he was doing that he was having conversations with himself.  It was funny so I grabbed my camera and took some video of it which I will post another time.  I get so many good ideas from other bloggers.

Adam has been abnormally fussy the past few days.  I think he may be teething.  The poor guy doesn't get a break!  He has seven teeth already.  He's started drooling more and that usually means more teeth.  He's been really clingy and just wanting to be held which doesn't really bother me.  Tonight I put him in the front carrier while I did things around the house, something I haven't done in a while.  I'm gonna miss that when he gets a little bigger :(

We bought more baby proofing things to try to keep Adam out of cabinets, etc.  Well now since he can't get in the cabinets he just goes for the drawers and ends up pinching his fingers.  And if we don't have the pantry door closed he goes right for the Oreos.  I'm think he inherited the Reager sweet tooth/chocolate lover gene.

Lately I've been trying really hard to think about what it was like when Owen was a baby... what he looked like, how he acted, what it felt like to hold him when he was so little.  I remember some things, but so much of his infancy is a blur.  I have tons of pictures, but no stories written down to go along with them.  I wish I would have blogged back then.  Last night while Owen and I were lying in bed I was telling him about how he was sucking his thumb and jumping up and down when they were taking pictures of him in my belly.  He thought that was funny.  He likes hearing stories about what he was like when he was a baby.

I have been on a baking kick.  Yesterday I made chocolate covered pretzels while the boys napped and in the evening, once Adam was in bed, Owen and I made peanut butter blossoms.  

 

Owen unwrapped two bags of Hershey kisses and did not eat one!  He was working on self-control:).  I did let him have one in the end because he worked so hard and did such a good job.  It was also his job to put a kiss on each cookie when they came out of the oven. 

 

He had fun looking at his reflection and talking to himself while he waited for more cookies to come out of the oven.  

 

This morning we took some of the chocolate pretzels and cookies to Linda's house for Linda and the other three teachers.  Now we have to deliver some to our neighbors.

Tonight I took Owen over to his best buddy, Aiden's house.  We had a yummy dinner, the boys played, and then they decorated Christmas cookies.  We had a really nice time and once again, Owen did not want to come home!

 Only 14 more days until Christmas!

Little Piggy

In the past two weeks Adam has turned into a little piggy.  He FINALLY likes to eat and he opens his mouth like a baby bird every time we feed him.  He is eating some baby food and some finger foods.  He seems to really enjoy green veggies, especially spinach and potatoes!  I thought he'd probably just skip baby food, but now he seems to like it so I might try making some again.  I hated to put all the time into making it when he only would take a few bites and then so much of it would go to waste. 

He eats cheerios and oatmeal for breakfast.  For lunch he has a veggie and a fruit.  He seems to like veggies better.  For dinner he has a veggie and a fruit too and sometimes I will put some of what we are eating on his tray.  He also has a couple snacks throughout the day of puffs and his ultimate favorite.... rice rusks!

He does this thing where he lays his head down on his tray.  I'm not sure if he does it when he's had enough to eat, is tired, or what, but it is pretty cute and he knows it so he does it often!

Wordless Wednesday