Sorry for the delay

I’m sure some are wondering what has become of Bella’s pneumonia and hospital stay.  We actually got home on late Wednesday afternoon and since then Bella has been back to normal.  She coughs in the night time occasionally but nothing compared to the common cold.  I guess they said we were lucky to get so many antibiotics into her through IV when we were in the hospital as that really seems to have helped her. 

The reason for the hiatus on the blog wasn’t because Bella was sick.  It was mainly due to catching up around the house after being gone for almost two days and for trying to get some extra sleep when I could, being that my night in the hospital with Bella produced little to no sleep.  Bella slept right through all the nurses, I did not.  Granted Bella was awake for 3 hours from 1:30 till after 4am in the morning.  They switched rooms for her at that time and then she was up and playing. 

The most memorable things about this trip to the hospital were.

1.  I now know that if Bella needs to go to the hospital and time affords we should always take her downtown.  The south children’s hospital is not comfortable dealing with her.

2.  Every doctor had a different opinion about what was wrong with Bella.  The doctors that actually saw her chest scan said it was pneumonia from a virus.  The doctors that didn’t see the scan just assumed based on her condition that the pneumonia was bacterial because she had aspirated food.  This point was a little frustrating to me.  Bella is actually a very good eater, and I know that she is prone to aspiration (food or drink into the airways/lungs) because of her low tone.  In the 4.5 years she has been eating she has never aspirated that we know of.  I was scared that they were going to make us put a feeding tube in her.  I thanked God that the pneumonia was in the lung that isn’t associated with aspiration so that this didn’t become an issue for us.

3.  The doctor’s are always very worried that things will go wrong because she has the chromosome abnormality.  This causes us to have to go through a lot of extra hoops and “play the game” as we call it about being extra careful and watchful of her.  This time around it meant that they shuffled people around to get Bella into intensive care, because it was full but they didn’t feel safe putting her in a non-intensive room.  The nurse in charge when Bella got to the ICU said in all his experience he has never seen a child come into the ICU like Bella did.  Bella arrived in a cool and calm fashion with her typical legs crossed.  The ICU is normally for very sick patients that arrive in distress.

4.  We started lobbying for Bella to change into a normal room that evening.  The nurses and residents that visited with us, felt that Bella did not need the ICU room, but again they weren’t quite sure of the unknown.  We did feel a little bad when we kept bringing this up and were told that the only person who could approve the room change was the attending doctor and he was busy trying to save a kids life.  We kind of dropped it at that point, saving a child’s life is a lot more important that getting Bella into another room.

5.  Luckily (or unluckily for a mother trying to sleep) they changed rooms for Bella in the middle of the night.  The “floor” rooms are more comfortable and allow more things.  We can use our phones, we can bring food into the room, we can have visitors, etc.  Oliver was in the hospital room with us for most of the day Wednesday, and he did a wonderful job being in the confined space.  He even managed to take a short nap in the room.

Both kids did great with this experience.  Bella was told she could leave when she ate food by mouth, she ate 3 servings of food between a late breakfast and lunch so we were good to go.  I’m just glad she had an appetite.

The guessing game

We complain about the guessing game and trying to figure out what is wrong with Bella.  We have our usual suspects…teething, ear infection, etc.

Today we had a new one – pneumonia.

That’s right, I’m currently typing this post from the hospital where I am staying with Bella.  We rushed to the ER this noon when she was having trouble breathing.  They diagnosed her with pneumonia and wanted to transport her downtown to the ICU.  So Jesse and Bella got to ride in the ambulance.  Since her ride down she has been doing good, and now we are fighting the red tape that is Bella’s abnormal condition.  All the doctors and nurses don’t think she needs to be in the ICU, but because of her condition and the unknown, they don’t want to move her to a regular non-intensive room.  Bella is sleeping right now and doesn’t seem to mind either way.  I’m just hoping with all the nurse checks and prods every hour, she is still able to get a decent sleep.  For now I am just glad that everything is going so well for her.

There is an uncomfortable looking recliner calling my name over in the corner or maybe Bella will make room for me on her bed!

Upstairs/Kid’s Bathroom–Finished

We started this project in August 2011 and touched almost every surface twice.  Two different paint colors on the wall, two different paint applications on the vanity, two different attempts at a concrete countertop.  The bulk of it was done in two months, the countertop and finishing touches took an additional seven months.  The project total ended up at $550.

And here is finally the big reveal!

Did you notice this picture, it’s actually my brother and I when we were little.  I would like to get some pictures of our kids in the tub to add to the room.

Please don’t judge my horrible picture taking skills.  It’s nearly impossible to get a good picture of a bathroom with a little point and shoot camera.  I have started to covet nicer cameras but just can’t wrap my head around the high price tag yet.

To refresh your memory, here is where we started to where we ended.

 

Week’s Update

Bella seems to be sick today.  We think she has an ear infection which brought along a fever and the chills…poor girl.  Probably explains her fussing and crying for the past couple of days around here.

It’s been one week since we started our 17 day diet.  It also happens to have been a busy week with planned activities, so we took 3 dinners off where we enjoyed dinning out with friends and drinks.  All the other times we did a great job following the book.  And I’m happy to report that we both have lost 6 pounds.  It also took me 5 days to get over my caffeine withdrawal headaches.  I was secretly hoping this new eating plan would give me more energy, but unfortunately that hasn’t happened yet.  So I still crave having a soda all the time!!

It’s been really important to prep all the food as soon as I buy it, so we have plenty of fruits and vegetables to munch on when we get hungry.  Meal time has taken a little more time to put together, and we have been having to run to the grocery store more often for fresh produce.  I’m a little worried with Bella being sick this week that it might be harder to stick to the regimen.  When she is sick it’s pretty much my most stressful time, and it doesn’t help that I have a work deadline on top of it.  A personal chef would help and of course a maid while we are at it!

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

And Take Me Home to Cry

Jesse had a work function at the Royals Game this Saturday.  We decided to take the whole family out for the tailgate, and then I would bring the kids home to go to bed, and Jesse would go into the game.

As we have probably mentioned before, getting everyone packed up to go to an event takes some planning.  And while we are at most events we are limited in what we can actually do, since usually one of us has to be holding Bella (she generally doesn’t like to be in her chair outside in the sun, and on a paved parking lot there really isn’t anyplace to lay her on the ground), and the other one is managing Oliver, since really outside on a parking lot, he still needs to be carried too.

Needless to say, it’s quite a chore trying to get everyone fed outside of the norm and for us to be able to enjoy ourselves a little.  I’m hoping it gets a little bit easier when Oliver can do more activities and have more fun.  But regardless we went and had a decent time.

Then on the way home in the vehicle the kids cried.  Oliver cried for half the way home and then went to sleep, and Bella started fussing as we got home.  Bella continued to fuss once she was put down on her blanket.

And I really couldn’t figure out a reason why she was crying.  So since Oliver had woken up and needed his bottle, I basically had to feed Oliver and ignore Bella.  Now Bella wasn’t doing a strong cry, more of a pouting fussy cry once in a while.  But after Oliver had his bottle and I put him down next to her, she went into a full on cry.

Any yes, Oliver thinks Bella’s crying is laughing, so it always makes him smile.

So then I had the dilemma of figuring out how I was going to put Oliver down to bed with Bella crying.  I ended up letting Oliver play a little bit, and tried to comfort Bella.  After holding her for a few minutes she seemed to be happy enough that I could put her back down and deal with Oliver.

Now here is the hard part.  For the past couple of weeks Oliver hasn’t wanted to go to bed.  I don’t mean he isn’t tired, I just mean he doesn’t want to put himself to sleep.  Nap times during the day are fine, but the evening hour, he is now insisting on being rocked to sleep.  And sometimes if you rock him to sleep and put him down in his crib, he wakes back up and wants the whole cycle to be done again.  I did this for about 3 days in a row and then said it was enough.  But Jesse and I differ on this point.  I am okay with letting him cry it out, and Jesse isn’t.  And this can be a tough one for people to deal with, especially when they are not on the same page.  With Oliver, if you pick him up and he immediately puts his head on your shoulder to go to sleep, then I’m guessing nothing is wrong, and he should be able to cry himself to sleep.  Then we also differ on how much time is the appropriate amount of time to let him cry.  I lean towards 20 minutes, Jesse says 10 should be the max.  So usually during his crying times we get frustrated with each other, and Jesse ends up going into his room to “rescue him”. 

And then of course that brings us back to tonight.  My question to Jesse and others who think we should just rock him to sleep and do whatever he wants so he doesn’t cry.  How am I supposed to do that when I am here by myself and have another child to deal with?  It would still be mean to leave Bella alone if she is in a good mood to put Oliver to sleep which could take 30 minutes to an hour, but what about tonight when Bella is screaming while I do our nighttime routine with Oliver.  I am very frustrated that we haven’t nipped this bedtime screaming yet.  There is no reason why a child who can put himself to sleep during the day, can’t do it at night. 

I have tonight to test the waters.  I put Oliver down at 7:15pm.  I went back to deal with Bella and Oliver screamed and screamed.  In fact for about 5 minutes they were screaming in unity.  I said I would go 20 minutes and then I would go back to him if needed.  But the thing is, it was only 15 minutes and the kid feel asleep.  So Jesse if you read this, it can be done, and it will be done.  Hopefully in a couple of nights it will all get better around here.

But that doesn’t mean I have any clue what is wrong with Bella.  She is currently laying beside me in our bed, since that seems to make her happy.  If only she could tell me…………….

Getting it done

I’m currently painting the cabinets in the bathroom, for the second time.  But I’m promising to have pictures of our completed bathroom sometime this week!!

It still amazes me how long it takes to get projects done around here.  But then it’s not surprising since by the time the kids go to bed, we really don’t feel like doing anything.  If we really want to step it up and get things done, well we probably will have to sacrifice and do things at night.  Granted they have to be quiet things that don’t wake the kids.

Someone has two teeth coming through, apparently he does all his teeth in pairs.  He has been biting everything, including us and his sister.  Bella is not enjoying being around her brother right now and gets visibly quiet when he is near, and then screams in delight when he moves away. 

He also has no concept of what the word “no” means.  We have to tell him no all the time, he gets into everything he shouldn’t, he bites everyone, and he climbs and grabs the dogs all the time.  But the little stinker thinks the word “no” means to laugh and then get to whatever he was doing at a quicker rate.  We have tried to scare him, but it doesn’t work.  Occasionally when we say “no”, he will start laughing and then go past his object of desire like he is listening to us, but then he pauses, strikes his pose, smiles, and then circles back towards the object.  So apparently this “no” business is funny stuff.

He also finally got his own cell phone after coveting ours for months.  Okay, his might be an old cell phone cover with a piece of cardboard inside, but it seems to do the job of object he can put in his mouth just fine.

A new lifestyle

So we have had a little excitement around here the past week.  Not really good excitement, more like everyone is feeling crappy.  Both kids are teething.  Oliver just had another bottom tooth pop through, and Bella seems to be working on her final set of molars (yeah!).  Except bringing in molars for Bella is a year process, so we will be dealing with this for a while yet.  But at least we are on the tail end, until we have to deal with the adult teeth process.  Jesse had been having stomach problems and went in to get it diagnosed.  We don’t have a final answer, but preliminarily it seems to be a problem with the gall bladder.  Well if you know anything about the gall bladder, it basically helps the body with digestion.  And when it has problems, it’s trying to tell you to change your diet.  This also piggy backs the weight I have been trying to lose for the past few months.  I had been trying to count calories and work out, but haven’t been very diligent with it.  We feel like we don’t really eat fatty foods around here, but we don’t eat nutrient rich foods.  We tend to get busy and stressed and eat a lot of processed foods.  I have been wanting to change this for awhile, hence the vegetable challenge during lent.  So we have done a little research and starting this weekend we are going to be undergoing a drastic eating change.

  We have decided to follow the 17 day diet.  The main reason for picking this book is that is removes sugars and carbs for the first couple of weeks so that your body no longer craves them.  This a huge deal to me, because if I am hungry, I pretty much want a quick carb.  I won’t be blogging about this daily, but I might give you weekly updates to let you know how it’s going.  The biggest challenges for me on the first 17 day cycle are going to be:  drinking 8 glasses of water a day (I might shoot for 4 glasses because 8 is just going to be impossible), not being allowed to drink anything sugary (I am a sugar drinker – I know total bad habit), having to cut out caffeine or learning to drink plain coffee, and of course not being able to reach for something carb or sugar loaded when things get stressful.  It’s going to be lots of vegetables, chicken, tuna, eggs, and a few fruits around here for the next couple of weeks.  Wish us luck!!

And happier days for a poor teething Bella!!

Anyone want to take a guess on walking?

I wanted to show you the difference 3 days makes around here.  The first video shows Oliver walking behind his toy with help from dad.  The second video was taken a couple of days later, and he can now pull up behind it on his own, walk behind it, and get back down when he wants to.  He hasn’t perfected steering yet, but I’m sure that will quickly follow.

Oliver walking with dad

Oliver walking behind toy at 9 months

He now wants to be up most of the time, the big question is how long till he is walking on his own.  I still think it will be a couple of months, but maybe he will surprise me.

Book Sling

I made this a little while ago, and need to make another one.  I didn’t quite follow the directions I had seen online and made it shorter.  It doesn’t hold too many books this way, so I plan to make a longer one and hang it above this short one.

It was super easy to make.

Can you believe this child is 9 months old and I am still finishing up projects in his nursery?  Talk about slacking.  I still have art projects to finish in both Bella and Oliver’s room.

Stairs

Someone found the stairs, and successfully climbed all the way up on his first try.

I didn’t take any pictures of him near the top, as I wanted to make sure my hands were free to catch him in case he went tumbling down.

Easter Weekend

This past weekend we had family in town for our first annual Easter Egg Hunt and Easter Dinner.  It rained on Saturday morning, but the sun was just starting to come out so we could do the hunt outside.

Oliver didn’t know what to think about the grass, he wasn’t really a fan.

Beckett was happy once he had two eggs in his hands.  Who needs more than they can carry!

Elle might have found a couple of eggs and tried to eat the contents inside, so the dogs had to be quarantined inside. 

Lizzy and Kate were the professionals, they made it all around the yard in record time.

Bella got to go around with Grandpa Sneller who helped hide the eggs, might have been an unfair advantage!

Hope everyone had a Happy Easter!!

Oliver at 9 months

Height = 30 inches (98%)

Weight = 19lbs15oz (60%)

Oliver is still crawling all over the place, army style.  When he pauses he will get up on his knees, but then he normally drops back down on his belly to move.  The biggest accomplishment for him this month, is that he has started to pull up on things and cruise from one object to another.  He actually started pulling up right after he turned 8 months old.  I just bought him a toy that he can stand behind and push to learn to walk, but for now the concept is a little lost on him and he gets himself into hilarious positions that mom and dad like to laugh at him in.  Oliver then joins in on the laughing.  Even so, I have a feeling it won’t be long until he masters that toy.  He also has started to open and get into every cabinet in the house.  Pots and pans, curling irons, pudding cups, and dog bowls are his favorite targets.  He also loves balls and throwing his toys so he can crawl after them.

Oliver still prefers feeding himself versus you feeding him.  I just need to be more creative in coming up with food that he can self feed.  I had planned on making all his puree food, but when it got down to it, it was just so much easier and less stressful to buy the premade baby food.  And since I always have to figure out what to make and feed Bella, this was one less step for me.  So now I am going to have to start cooking up some things for him to eat in pieces.  He isn’t a big fruit fan, which would be the easiest, so looks like he will be helping us to eat more vegetables around here!

Talking wise we are starting to do a lot more consonants, but “da da” is our favorite.

And you may have noticed how I mentioned last month that by 9 months this child would be sleeping through the night. Well lucky for us, we didn’t have to use any cry it out methods for this, and he started sleeping through on his own. Now that means our wake up times can be as early as 5 am, but still better than a 2 am night feeding. Our only small problem currently is that he is now crying at bedtime. It started when the weather got warmer and he is no longer in his sleep sack.  We are going to have a little bit cooler weather here soon, so we will go back to the sleep sack and test my theory. 

Summer in March

We were busy this last weekend enjoying the warm weather (almost 90 degrees).  We had a neighborhood garage sale on Saturday and then headed to a very crowded garden department at Lowe’s to buy supplies for our garden.

Sunday Jesse and I both worked on the garden and the lawn.  Here is a sneak peek at our little plot of land.

So far I have planted green leaf and romaine lettuce, spinach, 2 different types of carrots, cabbage and broccoli.  I have to plant some peas this evening, but we also need to create a structure for their vines to climb up.  I’m hoping this upper 80 degree weather doesn’t hurt these cold weather spring plants.

After we finished up with our lawn work we actually went swimming with the family.  In an outdoor pool.  Okay it was heated.  But it felt wonderful and both Oliver and Bella enjoyed the water.

Sorry no pictures from the pool, but I thought I would add this one of Oliver rockin the tank top on April 2nd.  Oliver’s 9 month appointment is tomorrow, so I should have some new stats and updates on his progress shortly.