Hanging out

Not much going on here. JB is still feeling yucky, he stayed home from church today. Some of his bloodwork came back elevated, so gonna be watching it. We go back to the doctor mid week.

I finally got the boys to eat some homemade french fries the other day. B looked at them and said, are these made from potatoes? I don't know where he thought they came from. Despite coming from potatoes, which he says he does not like, he ate the french fries. We have also decided it is time for a more formal bedtimes around here. So I was explaining to B that he will get to stay up a little later than Jbird and JB. He looked at me and said 'now, is this a good thing, should I be excited about it?' Maybe it will help Jbird get to sleep easier, without someone to talk with.

B's Blue and Gold ceremony with scouts went well. It was mainly for the boys that are crossing over from cub scouts to boy scouts. I am amazed at the time that commitment takes! They really do become your family in a sense.

Nothing on the schedule this week, except maybe a surprise (to the boys) visit from a family member for a few days. Sure hope it works out - flying standby and with all the crazy weather, you never know.

Took JB in for his 18 month check-up. Poor kid. He is so sick and I did not even realize it. He has two very infected ears (about the 4th time in 6 months), there is some rattling in his lungs, a very red throat, he was just beginning to get a little rash so they tested for strep and we did a complete blood work up. Hopefully the blood work comes back normal and we can get him started on antibiotics. Will need to be watching for a drug reaction though. The doctor even commented on how good he was for how sick he was.

B has his annual blue and gold ceremony this weekend with the cub scouts. He will be moving up the ladder, from a bobcat to a wolf, I believe?

Yesterday a friend took the younger two while B was at school. This is the second week in a row she has done this (we swap) and for 2 straight weeks, I have done nothing productive (housework)!

I have gotten into a really good routine this week. I go to the gym for an hour and then come home and read my chronological bible, shower and get breakfast started all before the boys wake up. Amazing how much smoother my days go! The scale at home has started to move, so I sure hope the one at the weigh in tomorrow night does too.

Although I am behind in my bible reading (going through the one year bible) and wanting to catch up, it is interesting reading things as they actually happened, verses how the bible was put together. Just getting through Genesis so not much different other than Job was inserted towards the beginning of Genesis. Just reading through Genesis again and seeing things a new once again. So much deceit and how that deceit just got handed down from generation to generation. A great reminder to me of how much my kids will follow my example and not necessarily my words!

Just wanted to check in. I know that warmer weather has to come and stay awhile sometime soon. Looking forward to running while the boys ride their bikes. I am pretty confident they both will be keeping me to a pretty fast pace!

B is now signed up for t-ball. I ended up taking a box of chocolates to sell in hopes of off-setting some of the cost - I just need to be sure I sell them quickly! This past Monday we toured our local paper with the cub scouts. Very interesting to see everything that goes into printing a newspaper. Had teacher conferences with B's teachers. Academically, he is doing well, although not always performing to the best of his ability. He has improved significantly in his reading over the last quarter. Still some minor behavioral issues that we are trying to figure out and come up with a game plan.

I weighed in on Tuesday. Did not lose as much as I had hoped pound wise, but am starting to feel differently. I am going to the gym every morning around 5am for an hour and some evenings I go back for a little more. My resting metabolic rate (what my body needs with nothing but 24 hours of rest) is 1530. So they recommend eating 200 less calories to lose weight. With working out, I have been trying to stay somewhere around 1400. It has gone pretty good so far. I have about 8 different meals all figured out with calories, protein and fiber. It has been hardest hitting my fiber every day - I am sure veggies would help with this, but thanks to beans and flat bread, I come pretty close. I hear that you know you are getting enough water when your urine is pale yellow or clear, so that is my water goal. It means hitting the bathroom quite frequently.

JB continues on a very slow road of speech therapy. Making very small strides in some areas. Still fighting the therapist at times, but when she pushes him, he buckles down and tries to give her what she wants from him.

A quiet weekend and no school on Monday, Presidents' Day.

JB and I got back from Texas on Sunday. The three I left behind did just fine (glad they are getting old enough to not require much more than supervision). I left them several days worth of clothes already picked out and found several of them still folded when I got back. If the worst that happened while I was gone is that they wore their clothes for 3 days, oh well.

JB did pretty good. The morning we left, Wednesday, I realized at 8:30 am that my flight left at 10:30, instead of 12:30. These are the times when I am glad I live about 7 minutes from the airport. I got the last few things together and went to pick up my friend who was dropping us off. I made it to the airport with about 50 minutes to spare. Here is a picture of JB waiting while eating a cookie from our friend Lisa - (they were very good).

He did pretty well on the flight, considering I was asking an 18 month old to be contained in a very small space for 1 hour 45 minutes. Our 3.5 hour layover in Denver turned into 5.5 hours, due to a frozen bathroom. They could not defrost it in time so brought in a different plane. We got a $100 voucher and free dish tv on our second leg. This is the first time I have flown without a stroller. I did not want the hassle, since I knew I would not need it in Texas. I extended the handle on my rolling bag and it made for a perfect stroller, I just pushed my bag instead of pulling it behind me. JB loved the moving walk way. He did very well, just needed a hand getting on and off. He really wanted to go on the escalator, but I was not feeling good and did not trust my sense of balance - carrying him and manuevering a rolling bag.

Enjoyed the time in Texas. It was a nice funeral and good to see some of the family I have not seen for a couple of years. The weather was decent. JB loved playing with his cousins (Kenna and Kolby)

The return flight was good, with only a 45 minute layover in Denver. As we approached Denver, I have never been on a plane that bounced so much just moments before landing. Not sure what the problem was, but as I was looking out the window, I braced myself about 5 seconds before the wheels touched down. The plane was just rocking back and forth. When I arrived at our airport, both boys greeted me with flowers and box of chocolates - they are learning young!

JB's rash is gone. However, during our trip he would have small welts that would appear for 10-15 minutes. Not a lot of them, but welts none the less. Usually appearing on his extremities, shoulders and face. Two of the times they appeared he had recently had a little peanut butter and the other time one almond. The other times could not trace it to anything particular. Maybe need to explore some food allergy testing at his next appointment.

A busy week, as far as evenings are concerned. T-ball sign-ups. B has decided he wants to play again. T-ball is for 5-6 year olds. Since B is a young first grader, most of his 1st grade friends will be playing in the 7-9 year old league. I have two parent teacher conferences, one with his homeroom teacher and one with his reading teacher - I know we will have lots to talk about. Thursday I have my first weigh in (since I missed last week). We have been well above freezing and watching the snow melt. Has been nice to get outside without hats and gloves.

Here is a random picture I took on Super Bowl Sunday. I bought some fun snacks for the boys, and told Jbird to help himself. He did and was obviously afraid I would be taking the bowl of M&Ms away from him...I am sure he was shoveling them hand over fist.

JB

Took JB back to the doctor. Consensus is it was a drug reaction mixed with some kind of a viral thing he had going on. So, no amoxicillin in the future. She said it could take up to 2 weeks to work itself out of the system. We will just continue to watch the rash and all the weird things it is doing.

JB and I are flying to Texas tomorrow for 4 nights. My uncle died and we are going down for the funeral. I am busy trying to get all the things for B and Jbird squared away. Will be good for JR to experience the morning and evening routines all by himself :-). Until today, I did not know if what JB had was contagious, did not think so, but had been working on plans for Texas. But now I have a doctor's note stating it is not contagious, so should not have a problem with security wondering if my child had something that was going to get spread.

Rash

We are into day 2 of JB's rash. At least this morning he perked up and was walking a bit. Yesterday we switched medicines to something that treats bacterial infections. Looking at all kinds of pictures on line, it does not seem to resemble any one specific thing. Yesterday when you would hold him and then put him down on the ground, he would just sit where you left him, not moving. When you would put him on his back, he struggled to roll over (I am guessing it hurts his shoulders?). The rash is just working its way around the body. Still not sure where it came from, someone mentioned maybe with the cut on his tongue, he picked something up. Still a low grade fever, but not much itching. Here are pictures from this morning and it does look better, not as deep red as it was and not very warm to the touch.

Plan on hitting the gym later and then hanging out with the boys (and possibly neighbors) for the Super Bowl.

Ramblings

Finally was able to download pictures. Here are some from the other day when the boys were painting.





Actually got out today with the younger two and Jbird's friend John. We again had a warmer day, so between errands made a stop at a park. The boys really enjoyed it.



JB is starting to make a few more sounds in therapy, but also frustrations. This past week he 'swatted' at the therapist when she did not give him what he wanted without proper signs/words. She immediately put him in a chair and told him 'no hit'. She said he pouted for a few seconds then got up and worked really well. For several weeks now he has been using a few signs correctly. Slowly coming together.

B got his report card. Continues to do well, but still has some of the same issues. One of the biggest ones is him being concerned for himself and not always worrying about others and being able to follow routines. Will be interesting to talk further at parent teacher conferences in a few days.

Here is a random picture of Jbird I took. He was excited to find his old pair of sunglasses. (I have all bought them new pairs for valentines day - I find that I always want to buy them candy....trying to get creative.)


A few weeks ago I was talking with a friend about trying to get back to the exercising, etc. I told her the one thing I have never really had and think I would do well with, is competition. Well, this past week saw an ad in the local paper about a weight loss challenge. It is for 12 weeks and it is $35 to enter. $25 of that goes into the pot and the top 3 winners split it. You meet once a week for weigh in and some informational stuff. Already signed back up at the gym and completed my first 2 miles on the treadmill. (Given I don't like the cold, I won't be consistently getting outside to exercise for a few months, hopefully about the time the challenge is over.) The winner of the last group won a couple of hundred dollars...motivation enough for me, not to mention time outside the house!

Was back at the doctor today with JB. Around 10 this morning I noticed a strange rash. My first thought was the chicken pox, because he was exposed 2 weeks ago....however, it does not look like that, not at this point. The doctor was not real sure what it was either. No fever and not itching too much. Sometimes when you hold him close he will wimper like it hurts when you press on it. Other than that, no other symptoms. Gave him Benadryl, thinking it was some type of histaminal (allergic) thing. Did not clear it up. Will see how it looks in the morning. His torso, face and arms have flat round red circles and his legs have huge red welts. Poor kid he just looked pitiful, but did manage to get a decent picture. (The only thing he had unusual was Apple, Strawberry, Kiwi juice but he has had kiwi and strawberries before, plus it was probably mostly apple.) Guess we are laying low this weekend!

Glad to hear that so many of you that normally don't experience a hard winter, are getting a taste of it. The good thing for those down south, you know it won't last, whereas we have 5 plus months of cold and snow and no snow days (schools have not shut down once in the last 3 years!)

JB's tongue is healing nicely. Probably another day or two and will be totally healed. Just amazed that it has healed so quickly.

It has been a quiet week. Report cards come home today. They recently celebrated 100 days of school! The computers at the school are not 100% yet - so still getting handwritten notes from the teacher.

B is gearing up for his blue and gold ceremony (scouts). From what I gather, it is when he will promote up to his next rank. Still seems to be something he really enjoys. I have jumped on board as the pack treasurer, so getting more involved myself. Just a really neat group of people.

Jbird and his little friend John are getting too comfortable with each other and becoming quite mischievious. Not sure who puts who up to things sometimes. Yesterday we pulled out the paints. I made it very clear that you paint on paper. Before I knew it, they had both crawled under the table and were painting on the floor! They are both very fortunate it was washable. I had to give both of them a time out twice. Once I had put Jbird on the bathroom step stool. Big mistake closing the door on him. He made quite a mess with the toilet paper!

JB was not real sure what to think of the paint. Twice I caught him as he went to put a full paintbrush in his mouth. He certainly did not like his hands dirty with paint. (My computer and my camera have not wanted to communicate with each other the last two days - for some reason - so I can't download some recent pictures.)

Just got a call from one of the AWANA teachers and seems leaders are out sick, so going in to help today. One more reason I am glad I am able to stay home and help out in places when needed. Speaking of helping out, last week I was in B's classroom. His teacher told me one day she was, due to family emergency, a few minutes late getting to the classroom in the morning. She was shocked when she walked in and all the kids had already said the pledge and were in their seats waiting quietly.