Crazy days

Things are getting crazy around here these days. Peyton is back in soccer, which occupies 1 to 3 nights a week depending on the schedule. It's SAT-10 and ARMT time at school (YAY!...full of sarcasm) so the schedule at school and the kids are crazy, too. We are trying to get ready for all the things to come in the next three weeks...soccer games, field trips, math tournaments, Andrew's surgery, Andrew's first birthday, Nick working and going out of town. Forgive me, please, if you don't hear from me for a while. Good Lord willing, I will be around after it's all said and done.

Most recent news

Well, we went to the ENT yesterday. Turns out Andrew has otitis media with effusion. This means that while he does not always have an ear infection, he always has fluid in his ear. He does not have any permanent hearing loss, but the audiologist said his hearing is low at some frequencies right now because of the fluid. He is having tubes inserted in April, which will cause his hearing to go right back up to normal. I am not happy about it, but it would be a thousand times worse if he had permanent hearing loss or speech delays because of the fluid. The ENT said it was a simple procedure, takes about 5 minutes on each ear. They don't even do oral sedation anymore. Just nitrous oxide like you get at the dentist is enough to knock out a little one. No IV, nothing like that. They also said he will be free to swim, bathe, be under water, etc. We are supposed to go on about business as usual. Keep the little man in your prayers that he will do fine with everything.

First day back

Yesterday was a long day. I had gotten so used to being off work for the week...I did not want to go back. I left two crying babies yesterday morning, which did not make me feel good at all. The kids at school were a little wild, as expected. But the afternoon was great. Peyton had her first dental work done (repair of a chipped tooth and filling of a shallow cavity.) She did GREAT! She handled the nitrous oxide well and told the dentist lots of stories. Apparently the NO2 made her chattier than normal, if you can imagine that! Then yesterday evening, the whole family went to the track. I strolled Andrew and walked a little over a mile while Peyton and Nick played on the playground. A great ending to the day.

Spring Break Fun

We have been VERY busy this week. Saturday we went to a birthday party for one of Peyton's classmates at Inspired Equestrian on Empire Road. She had a blast. Then we went to Chad's 30th birthday party and hung out with friends. Sunday was church and all the usual running around.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Monday was Peyton's first trip to the dentist. She has two shallow cavities that they will fix in the next two weeks. She was a perfect patient. No tears, only smiles. I had prepared her by telling her that no grown-ups were allowed in the dentist's room, only kids. They wanted to call me back to review her medical history and she got sad and said, "No, I have to go by myself. I'm a big girl!" So they let her go back and then came back for me. Below is her pic with her new toothbrush!


Tuesday Mom, Peyton, Andrew and I went to the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga. We had a blast. The kids behaved perfectly, which was wonderful. We also got to see the "Under the Sea" 3D IMAX movie. Peyton was hilarious trying to grab the fish as they swam at her.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Last, but certainly not least, on Wednesday I went with Kim, Autumn and Anna to Sips 'n Strokes on 280 to try our hands at painting angels. Despite our panic attacks over getting it right, I think our work turned out beautifully. It has been a great week so far.

Caller #9

Guess what? I won tickets for Nick (and me, of course) to go see Coldplay. They are coming in concert May 18th. Nick and all the doctors he works with all love the band. Anyway, on 96.5 you can win tickets for being the 9th caller anytime they play "Viva la Vida" in it's entirety. I had thought of getting Nick tickets for our anniversary, but we really don't have the extra dough right now. So on the way to work yesterday, I start singing along to "Viva.." and realize I should be trying to call in. I called and got through the first time only to hear, "You're the 5th caller. Sorry, try again." So I hit "end", then "send" and I WAS THE 9TH CALLER! WOOHOO! I have never won anything on the radio.

The icing on the cake was that Peyton was on the radio, too. I was clapping and yelling because I was so excited and Peyton was in the background saying, "What, Mama? What? What happened?" I told Rob & Shannon on 96.5 that I was taking her to school and she didn't understand all the commotion. They asked me to get her to say her high-pitched "WHAT?" again. They thought it was hilarious, and so did she!

Snow, Spring Weather and Special Celebration

Snow...

Spring Weather...

Special Celebration (Happy Belated Birthday, Heather!!!)

Doctor's Appointment

Well, we went to the doctor this afternoon. We didn't get to see Dr.Walley; he wasn't there. We saw Dr. Christina Cordell instead and she was really nice. Peyton really liked her. Peyton and Andrew both have ear infections in their right ears. Dr. Cordell said that last weekend when Peyton ran a temp for a few days and had to stay home, it was probably a viral cold. The cold caused the sinus drainage, which caused the ear infection. Andrew's ear, however, is just in the beginning stages so maybe we caught it in time. We thought he had pink eye, but nope. Dr. Cordell said it is either (A) a cold in his eye related to the drainage, or (B) the onset of cellulitis. What is cellulitis, you might ask? (I had to, because I didn't know what it was.) It's an infection of the tissue and space around the eye which, if left untreated, can cause serious complications. She told us to watch the area around his eye for spreading redness and/or a purple and red tint to the eyelid, accompanied by increasing fever. If that happens, we are to call them immediately because there's some shot he has to get. FUN! As for now, they are both back on antibiotics and Andrew has an appointment with a pediatric ENT on March 17th.

GUESS WHO'S WALKING?

Yes, hard to believe, but it's true! Andrew started walking yesterday! He has been doing one or two "momentum steps", you know, when they start to fall and their feet move to try and keep up. Well, we had been practicing while Daddy was gone. He has a wind-up ladybug toy that he really likes. When Nick got home, I put Andrew next to his chair and held out the ladybug thinking he would do his one or two steps and crash. Nope, SIX STEPS! And that was just the beginning. He did that several times and then moved on to walking from me to Nick and back the other way. Then, we decided to really try our luck. Nick sat about six feet away from him holding out a spoon with the soupy part of chicken and dumplings. Yep, he walked the whole way. He needs a shirt that says, "Will walk for food!" My baby boy is growing up too quickly.

On a different note, both he and Pey are sick AGAIN! Peyton started running a fever of 101 on Saturday and ran it all day yesterday. She has a bad cough, but no other symptoms. Andrew's right eye is all gloopy and he's not sleeping at all. (All he did yesterday was one 45 minute nap. NO FUN!) I am calling today to get Pey an appt. with Dr.W and Andrew an appt. with the ENT. Something's gotta give. These babies cannot be sick like this all the time.