Cheese and Pickles: Bryn

Showing posts with label Bryn. Show all posts

Sunday, November 4

Samuel is sick.

6:15 AM, Friday
Samuel woke up happy, as usual. After dropping the kids off at school, Bryn and Samuel went with me to Walmart. The entire time I held him or he rode in the buggy.

11 a.m., I noticed a raised circle by his nose- like a mosquito bite. He and Bryn sat down to watch a movie.

2:15 p.m., I went to turn the tv and DVD player off and saw his cheeks were red and swollen with hives. I called Johnny at work and he said to give him Benadryl. The rash was on his arms and legs, but not his feet or torso. Within 30 minutes, he was asleep in his carseat and the rash was gone. I thought it might be a milk allergy because he had no other symptoms and he had just had yogurt and chocolate milk. We picked up the kids from school and I took Samuel to the hospital to show Johnny. We decided to keep him away from dairy and keep the Benadryl handy.

5:36 PM, Samuel has a fever, 99.8.

6:43 PM, hives are back.

7:30 PM, Johnny comes home, listens to Samuel's breathing- its clear. Samuel's temperature is 102.9. We give Samuel Benadryl and Tylenol, put him to bed.

1:30 AM Saturday, Johnny gets up to give more medicine. Samuel has a higher fever Not sure about the rash, but his breathing has changed. He's very congested.

3:50 AM, Samuel wakes up crying and coughing, gets in bed with us.

4:15 AM, Johnny has his stethoscope and is listening to Samuel. His lungs are congested really bad. He calls into work and says he wants to be put on call (he was supposed to be anyway, so he confirmed it.) We get dressed to go to the ER.

5:00 AM, Samuel gets triaged. His fever is 103. He gets lab work. Doctor gives prescriptions for antibiotic and breathing treatments.

7:30 AM, Samuel feels better and wants breakfast, so we eat in the cafeteria while waiting for Walmart's pharmacy to open.

8:00 AM, naps in the parking lot.

9:00 AM, Johnny goes in to get the meds.

9:08 AM, temperature 101.1.

9:45 AM, We get home and give Samuel his antibiotic and ibuprofen, which he promptly throws up, along with his breakfast.

10:00 AM, After a bath to lower his temperature, he gets his antibiotic and Johnny gets called into work. Thank goodness for the nap in the car.

10:42 AM, Albuterol breathing treatment while Samuel naps. Rash is back and changes every 15-20 minutes.

11:15 AM, gave 1 acetaminophen suppository.

1:50 PM, Johnny has me count his breaths per minute, it's 39.

2:07 PM, After talking to a pediatrician, he tells me to bring him back to the ER.

2:29 PM, I'm in the ER, the rash is gone, still has fever, give him ibuprofen.

4:15 PM, they will admit him. He gets chest X-rays. Rash is back and changing quickly, but never itches.

Okay, so you get the idea. They said its pneumonia, but it's more like a viral bronchitis and we don't know what the rash is.

Last night was rough because of the frequent visits from the super friendly staff. No, I'm not being sarcastic, I really like the staff here, it just wasn't easy to sleep. Samuel tossed and turned a lot. His rash came and went yesterday and into the night. They gave him Benadryl at bedtime and it didn't come back until this morning, and then it was only small areas that didn't last long. He had a fever of 100.6 early this morning. The doctor said he has to be fever free 24 hrs before he can go home, so we'll be here another night. Tomorrow a dermatologist is supposed to come check out the rash, and if it's not there, he can look at these lovely pictures.

Johnny was supposed to work today, but couldn't because of me being here with Samuel and Olivia started running a fever yesterday. Hers is not related though- it's upper respiratory. He'll have to take the kids to school in the morning. Also tomorrow, Johnny starts a new online 5-week nursing course. Maybe he can bring the laptop up here and work on it.

Samuel is going to be fine. They've changed his breathing treatments from every 4 hrs, to every 6, which means he sounds clearer. His fever is gone now and he hasn't had much of a rash today.

What makes this extra hard and sad is that tomorrow is Bryn's 5th birthday! Hopefully Samuel and I will home in time for a party!

Friday, May 4

Firsts

Samuel woke up this morning a little more clingy than usual. Actually, most mornings he jumps out of bed and is ready to go go go! Today, not so much. I enjoyed holding him and cuddling, until he began to dry heave. And then it came out. Yep- a stomach virus. Thankfully it was just water- the little bit he had to drink this morning, which means he digested the chicken stir-fry he devoured last night.

Katherine ran bath water for him. He cried as I bathed him. He's never been sick before. He has had a fever and runny nose- so maybe he's had a cold, but never a stomach virus.

He threw up again just before I left to take the kids to school. Now he's just lying on the couch, surrounded by his burp rags and blanket. Bryn is whisper-singing to him and making sure he's comfortable.

Today we'll be doing a lot of cuddling and holding. Hopefully, Samuel will be doing a lot of resting.

Monday, April 30

Laundry

As I sit here typing, I hear my washing machine and dryer spin the second and third loads of laundry around and around. The clothes tumble and fall with interruptions of water filling the washer. The movement is almost choreographed- a synchronized dance so to speak. With eight people living in this house, this sound is frequently heard.

I saw this on Pinterest recently. It's by President Thomas S. Monson.

It really made me think about how quickly time passes and how the arduous chores that seem never-ending really don't last long. Yesterday I thought about this quote and, for a second, wondered if after my kids are grown and gone, would I go visit them and do their laundry? I laugh about it now, but I really do wonder if I will miss those monotonous chores enough to want to relive them, even momentarily.

I realize I'm probably more sentimental than most; I can hear you laughing at my comments already. I mean, really? Who gets sentimental over laundry? In all honesty, it's one of the more enjoyable chores. I can sit on the couch and take my time folding eight loads in an afternoon (no, I do not usually have that many- that's only if I procrastinate) while watching a favorite show on the DVR, a movie or HGTV. Then it's up to the kids to help put it all away. We've got it pretty good compared to our ancestors, right? I can't complain.

And did you notice how cute Bryn is with a vacuum cleaner? She begged to vacuum for me that day. She's 4 yrs old and weighs less than 30 lbs (yes she does eat and the Dr. says she's fine). It's pretty cute watching her use all her weight to push and pull the vacuum cleaner across the rug. She is an excellent helper and reminds me everyday that I am her best friend and that she is mine. Who wouldn't want this to last forever?

Monday, October 3

"Why are you smiling like that?"

"I just like smiling. Smiling's my favorite!"

By far, one of the best movie lines- and a great mantra.

Today I'm smiling because of these people:

Quick update: Johnny supposedly has lupus. "Early, mild" to be exact. I say supposedly because he has been working the night-shift for so long that his circadian rhythm is practically non-existent. That messes you up big time. Good news: He's switched jobs and now works in the ICU at Medical Center (same town, different hospital) on the DAY SHIFT! Our lives have changed dramatically. He loves his job. He loves his coworkers. He even loves his boss! Yeah- that's pretty amazing. And now that he has switched, he is becoming a normal person. He's getting used to sleeping through the night (that is, if Samuel does- no I do not make Johnny get up with the baby, but if the baby gets up, it's inevitable that he'll hear him.). He doesn't have the aches/pains anymore and his entire attitude/temperament is positive. He can't wait to start online classes later this month for his RN-BSN. In 2 years, we'll be moving away for CRNA school.- Johnny's ultimate dream job. We hope to come back here after it's all said and done.

Anyway- back to the health concern. Since switching jobs we are without insurance for 30 days. Our hope/plan is for Johnny to live a normal life- sleep 8 hours each night, eat healthy, exercise for a month or so, then go back and have lab work done to check his ANA level. His Dr. told him this morning, in passing, that he thinks Johnny should go back in 6 mos and that stress/sleep deprivation could be what raised his ANA levels to start with. Nice!

It's amazing what a difference it's made in him switching jobs. We have discussed why the timing has been what it's been- remember when we prayed and were told not to switch jobs? For whatever reason, the timing has been good for us now and we feel that it has a lot to do with him starting school. Before, when we prayed about it, it was a job change for money and school wasn't a priority. Now it is and we're making it happen.

It feels good to know that we are where we should be, doing what we should be doing with the people we should be with. That's enough to make anyone smile.

Monday, August 15

Bryn

Bryn always asks me to help her say her bedtime prayers.

Usually, I only start her off and she says what

she wants/needs to say and ends all by herself.

Tonight she prayed, "...and bless that I can grow up and be like Mom and I can make popcorn..."

I couldn't help but smile. I am pretty good at pushing that button on the microwave.

And I ~~never~~ hardly ever burn it ;).

I'm pretty confident that she will grow up to be like me...and make popcorn. ;)

Smart girl.

Tuesday, July 26

Say cheese!

I love Samuel's smile in this picture.
Did you know he has 6 teeth?

Four on top and two on bottom.

And did you know he just turned 10 months old?

For the longest time he was "army crawling" and dragging his big little belly across the tile floor.

In the last week and a half, he is crawling on all fours! I don't have a picture or video yet- I really ought to learn how to take moving pictures that don't blur. Hmmm...

I love this picture of Johnny with Samuel. Oh- did you notice Johnny shaves his head now? He got tired of my joke. Oh! I didn't tell you yet? Well, here goes... "Do you want to know the 'real' reason Johnny doesn't have any hair? It's because I'm too vain to pull my own hair out!" Yeah, I thought it was pretty funny too. I guess he heard it too many times and decided to shave it all off- maybe he thought it would help me manage stress better. We'll see.

Sweet Travis! He has glasses now. I think he looks so smart- like a little genius. Travis is always so helpful and gives the best hugs and tells me he loves me, several times throughout the day...makes my heart swell. Out of all the kids, he is the most vocal about how he feels about homeschooling this year. He wants it to start yesterday! Maybe he is a genius?

Olivia is growing up so much. She's so helpful with Samuel and is becoming more and more responsible. She's 7 already! That means next year she will be baptized! Yikes. She's super excited to start homeschooling next month. I love her eagerness and excitement about life. She is a good example for me because she is more easy going- a trait I've always admired and tried to emulate.

My Bryn. Look at those beautiful brown eyes! She has so much energy and the cutest little voice. I love the way she communicates and explains things to me. Since she got to be the baby for the longest, she and I have our own way to communicate. For example, I sometimes kiss her cheeks over and over and she'll kiss mine and I'll say, "Hey! Give me back my sugars!" and she'll have to kiss me again. Or I'll say, "Bryn, I need sugars so I can be sweet." and she'll give me kisses.
She is adorable!

Katherine doesn't normally wear makeup. This picture is from our last visit to Vidor. My sister, Rachel, dolled her up- doesn't she look beautiful? She's always beautiful. Being the oldest, Katherine is always willing to do whatever needs to be done and works very hard at getting along with her siblings. I appreciate her so much for being her. She's going into the 5th grade. She is excited about homeschool starting too. She is interested in so many things and can't wait to learn about it all- like all things Australia, crocheting, sewing, music, art, having a book published... amazing things! She's becoming very task-oriented like her mom.

Ella has the best laugh! Her sense of humor is so surprising sometimes. She's also very inquisitive. Some of the questions she asks are surprising. Lately, the questions have had a lot to do with following Jesus Christ or following Satan and the differences between our Church and other churches. For example, she asked me, "Mom, what are people called if they're not called Mormons?" See what I mean? She'll be starting kindergarten this year, which means she may never go to public school. Our first child to do that! I love that Ella is a good friend. She plays well with all of her siblings and is usually willing to share. When we were in Vidor, she was jumping off the diving board more than anyone-wearing floaties of course. Such a brave girl!

Monday, June 27

Motivate Me Monday: Losing Weight without the Workout!

Since I last posted, I have worked out maybe twice. But I'm not apologizing or even asking for more encouragement, because I have lost, like 3-4 lbs!

That's pretty amazing, right?! Last Tuesday morning I had a great workout! I did Turbo Sculpt and was able to push myself more than I had in a long time.

That afternoon I felt sore. I love feeling sore after a workout! But I did think it was odd that I would feel sore so soon.

The next day I knew I had a sinus infection and maybe a virus. My legs and joints ached and my sinuses burned, but no fever. Shoulda known the soreness wasn't from the workout.

*sigh*

On top of that, all week I was running errands and didn't get to nurse Samuel as often as usual. Ella had dental surgery on Friday, so I was away for several hours. (She had some cavities worked on. I'll blog about it soon.)

By Saturday night I had full blown mastitis. 102.3° fever, aches, chills, miserable. My aches and pains from earlier in the week were still there, only worse. So I'm still not sure if I had 1 or 2 sicknesses. ??

Today I still feel weak and sick, but no fever. I've been nursing exclusively. Poor Samuel. He was really liking his baby food. Also, I'm about to start an antibiotic (once I pick it up)- or should I if I'm not running a fever anymore?

Once I'm able to workout again, I'm really going to hit the weights hard! I don't want to lose muscle from being sick. Plus it's my favorite way to workout ;)

I have to say, my kids have been amazing! Not only was I sick, but Johnny has been sick since last Tuesday (or maybe before that) with a low-grade fever, and Travis has had a fever since Sunday. Katherine has been an angel babysitting for me and helping around the house. Olivia and Bryn have been super helpful and Ella too, when she could. Samuel is all smiles all the time. He had a fever last night, but seems okay today.

I couldn't ask for more.

♥