This morning we brought Adelaide in for her one year well check. My mom and I walked there with her in the stroller and stopped for breakfast on the way back home. It sure is nice to have a mini downtown so close to us.
It's official. Adelaide no longer likes Dr. Spencer. Just entering his exam room made her frustrated. I guess she's been poked and prodded a little too much in there. It's so sad 'cause she used to love him. Now she just pushes him away and doesn't want him near her. She was actually kicking him when he looked in her throat. Granted she is getting in her molars and she has an extremely red throat, but still. He used to comment on how sweet and happy she was all the time, now she said seems like she's getting a little attitude. Hmm. She didn't do that at the ENT or our friend Art's exams, weird. She's taking it all out on Dr. Spencer.
She finally gained a little weight. She was up to 20 lbs on the dot which is the 35th percentile. She's now 30.5 inches tall, the 80th percentile, and her head as always is somewhat smaller, the 60th percentile. At her 9 month check up she was pretty proportionate, now she's a tall lanky little thing. He said it will probably be hard for her to catch up on her weight now since after one year, kid's appetites diminish. Oh well, what can I do? Keep offering her as much milk as she wants (and I guess as much brisket as she wants too-- see previous post). :)
Adelaide has a cold now. The same junk as Rocky has and has passed along to both of us. We're all coughing, mucous-filled, snotty folks. I'm hoping she'll actually be able to kick it without antibiotics this time. Rocky hasn't been that lucky; he started antibiotics on Tuesday.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Birthday!
It's so hard to believe my sweet baby is one! Time has really flown by. A year ago Adelaide was just a limp little sack o' baby that couldn't even stay awake more than 10 minutes, let alone do cool things like hold up her head. Now she's a full fledged toddler, toddling her way into all kinds of fun (and trouble). Here's some pictures from her birthday weekend. Rocky's parents came into town and we had a party for Adelaide last Saturday. It was a blast. I never thought our backyard could hold so many people. Adelaide had a good time playing with all the "big kids". I brought her by the kids her age once and she just bolted. Older kids are way more interesting I guess. Her favorite presents were a Leap Frog phonics magnet set, a sweet pink pail that she loves to fill up with pretty much anything and carry around, and a cool tent that she's been playing in a ton out in the backyard.
With Rocky's parents in town, of course we had to go to Rudy's at least once. Adelaide ate her fair share. She had a bowl of sweet potatoes, then some cream corn, and I don't even know how much brisket. She loved it and kept wanting more. After lunch she had a good time in the flowers out front. She was being good and not getting in the flowerbed, but the grandparents couldn't resist the photo opportunity.
I am, by no stretch of the imagination, crafty, but Adelaide's cupcakes were one of my attempts at being so. I loved the hot pink cupcakes the best. Rocky did the "grass" which I think was my favorite part. I also made another batch of chocolate cupcakes due to the number of guests. I was thankful that I only had 3 left over especially since Easter was the same weekend and Adelaide got 3 (count 'em), 3 baskets (and that's without us even contributing).
At her birthday party what Adelaide did more than anything (other than follow around the big kids) was fill up her cousin Claire's pail with rocks and then dump them out. I was so excited that she got her own pail as a present. I would have never thought to buy one for her.
Adelaide hasn't eaten wheat for almost 2 weeks now so her birthday "cake" was actually made out of ice cream (Haagen-Dazs though so was she really missing out?). Rocky took a little quart container, sliced off the bottom, and then decorated it using the left over icing from the cupcakes. I never even saw him do it but it turned out super cute. Adelaide loved the ice cream and ate over half of it, but she didn't love sitting down to eat it. She had some major diaper rash and not too long after "happy birthday" ended, she reminded her (very loudly) that she was hurting.
Adelaide got some great gifts-- a pink pail, a phonics magnet set, a medical kit, books, clothes, a wagon, a power wheels, a tent, a baby pool, a rocking chair, shoes, etc. Here's one of my favorite pics of Adelaide opening her presents :).
I love her expression as she checks out her four wheeler. If you can click on it and make it bigger you can just see her wide-mouthed wonder. You can also see all the Wilton food coloring all her her precious Gymboree dress. I thought it was a goner for sure but two applications of Biz paste later and it's as good as new.
With Rocky's parents in town, of course we had to go to Rudy's at least once. Adelaide ate her fair share. She had a bowl of sweet potatoes, then some cream corn, and I don't even know how much brisket. She loved it and kept wanting more. After lunch she had a good time in the flowers out front. She was being good and not getting in the flowerbed, but the grandparents couldn't resist the photo opportunity.
I am, by no stretch of the imagination, crafty, but Adelaide's cupcakes were one of my attempts at being so. I loved the hot pink cupcakes the best. Rocky did the "grass" which I think was my favorite part. I also made another batch of chocolate cupcakes due to the number of guests. I was thankful that I only had 3 left over especially since Easter was the same weekend and Adelaide got 3 (count 'em), 3 baskets (and that's without us even contributing).
At her birthday party what Adelaide did more than anything (other than follow around the big kids) was fill up her cousin Claire's pail with rocks and then dump them out. I was so excited that she got her own pail as a present. I would have never thought to buy one for her.
Adelaide hasn't eaten wheat for almost 2 weeks now so her birthday "cake" was actually made out of ice cream (Haagen-Dazs though so was she really missing out?). Rocky took a little quart container, sliced off the bottom, and then decorated it using the left over icing from the cupcakes. I never even saw him do it but it turned out super cute. Adelaide loved the ice cream and ate over half of it, but she didn't love sitting down to eat it. She had some major diaper rash and not too long after "happy birthday" ended, she reminded her (very loudly) that she was hurting.
Adelaide got some great gifts-- a pink pail, a phonics magnet set, a medical kit, books, clothes, a wagon, a power wheels, a tent, a baby pool, a rocking chair, shoes, etc. Here's one of my favorite pics of Adelaide opening her presents :).
I love her expression as she checks out her four wheeler. If you can click on it and make it bigger you can just see her wide-mouthed wonder. You can also see all the Wilton food coloring all her her precious Gymboree dress. I thought it was a goner for sure but two applications of Biz paste later and it's as good as new.
Monday, March 24, 2008
The Surgery
Everything went well. We were a little nervous we might not be able to go through with it since last night Adelaide began running a fever of 102.5 (the highest she's ever had) and was coughing and congested. None of us slept well last night. Adelaide woke up numerous times and was restless all night. I was probably even worse. I was awake every hour of the night. I wasn't nervous really, but couldn't seem to turn my mind off. It was sort of how I was before the first day of school every year.
Since I wasn't sleeping anyway, I got up at 4:50 this morning to get ready. We headed out of the door at 5:30. We got to the surgery center at 6 and got back to the room at about 6:30. Adelaide was totally happy 'til we got in there. She knew something was up. She hated the blood pressure monitor on her toe. She hated the gown she had to be in. She didn't like the nurses. She was being very whiny. Her temperature was still up-- 100.2-- and she has a mucousy cough so the doctor and anesthesiologist had to confer to decide whether or not to go through with it. They decided it would be fine.
Our ENT prayed with us and our good friend Jeff before we had to leave. Jeff carried her back to the operating room. That was nice. It felt like we had just settled into the waiting room when Dr. Kemper came out to tell us everything went well. He said her ears, especially the left, were really bad. He said the right one at first didn't look horrible but then he suctioned the fluid out and he said there was lots of it and it was really thick. He said he thinks it will be helping her feel better very soon.
It was only a few moments later when Jeff came out and told us she was awake and sad. They told us to expect a groggy freaked out girl and that's what we got. She just wouldn't stop crying or whining. The only thing that made her feel better was drinking juice. Unfortunately she gulped her entire sippy cup of apple juice down in about 30 seconds (which is her typical style) and about 10 seconds later she vomited it all up. She had settled down a bit but the vomiting made her get mad all over again.
They went ahead and discharged us even with the vomiting, and we headed home. She drank juice again, much slower this time on the way home. Once again she vomited it up. She continued to cry pretty much the entire way home but then crashed as we pulled into our neighborhood. She was so worn out she didn't even stir as we pulled her out of the car and brought her into bed. She's currently napping. I hope she gets a good nap in and starts to feel less disoriented when she wakes up.
Thanks for praying for her and caring. Oh, she's already starting to stir. Poor girl.
Since I wasn't sleeping anyway, I got up at 4:50 this morning to get ready. We headed out of the door at 5:30. We got to the surgery center at 6 and got back to the room at about 6:30. Adelaide was totally happy 'til we got in there. She knew something was up. She hated the blood pressure monitor on her toe. She hated the gown she had to be in. She didn't like the nurses. She was being very whiny. Her temperature was still up-- 100.2-- and she has a mucousy cough so the doctor and anesthesiologist had to confer to decide whether or not to go through with it. They decided it would be fine.
Our ENT prayed with us and our good friend Jeff before we had to leave. Jeff carried her back to the operating room. That was nice. It felt like we had just settled into the waiting room when Dr. Kemper came out to tell us everything went well. He said her ears, especially the left, were really bad. He said the right one at first didn't look horrible but then he suctioned the fluid out and he said there was lots of it and it was really thick. He said he thinks it will be helping her feel better very soon.
It was only a few moments later when Jeff came out and told us she was awake and sad. They told us to expect a groggy freaked out girl and that's what we got. She just wouldn't stop crying or whining. The only thing that made her feel better was drinking juice. Unfortunately she gulped her entire sippy cup of apple juice down in about 30 seconds (which is her typical style) and about 10 seconds later she vomited it all up. She had settled down a bit but the vomiting made her get mad all over again.
They went ahead and discharged us even with the vomiting, and we headed home. She drank juice again, much slower this time on the way home. Once again she vomited it up. She continued to cry pretty much the entire way home but then crashed as we pulled into our neighborhood. She was so worn out she didn't even stir as we pulled her out of the car and brought her into bed. She's currently napping. I hope she gets a good nap in and starts to feel less disoriented when she wakes up.
Thanks for praying for her and caring. Oh, she's already starting to stir. Poor girl.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
To Tube or not to Tube
That is the question. We took Adelaide to the ENT on Tuesday and he suggested that Adelaide get tubes on Monday. Monday! It seems like it's all happening so fast. I left the office (without Rocky BTW) having scheduled surgery for our little girl. It was weird.
When we first got there we did another hearing test which is actually pretty cool (not that she had to have it, but the actual process itself). We sit together in a sound proof booth-- Adelaide in a high chair and me beside her. I silently preoccupy her attention with toys while the tech plays sounds of different pitches in speakers beside her. When she hears a sound and turns her head, the tech has a puppet light up and dance. I creates a sort of Pavlovian response to keep her turning her head toward the sounds she hears. Well, turns out Adelaide's hearing is still a bit diminished from all the thick fluid in her ears.
The ENT then checked out her ears. He, like the pediatrician, said she had a slight infection in one ear but that both were still very full of fluid, fluid that was thick mucous-like fluid. After taking a look, he suggested we get tubes. He said he based his tube decision on 2 criteria-- 1. more than 4 or 5 ear infections a year. 2. persistent otitis media (fluid/ inflammation in the ears for longer than 2 or 3 months). He said Adelaide struggles with both. He also the fluid is the perfect culture median and without it draining she's prone to more infections. So that coupled with her ongoing diminished hearing and the problems ongoing antibiotic use cause, he decided it was worth it.
The thing he was particularly concerned with is her hearing. He said this age is so critical to speech development that down the road if she continued to have muddled hearing, it could become more of a problem.
So I came home and told Rocky what the doctor said and I think he started to freak out a bit. He didn't like the idea of his little baby undergoing anesthesia. Honestly, who would like that idea. Anyway, after talking with friends, a call from the ENT, and some reading on my part, we are both feeling more confident and ready to proceed. I'm a researcher by nature and don't accept opinions as my own until I've learned about the subject 'til my heart's content. I don't think I'll ever be one of those folks that hears a doctor's suggestion and just goes with it. Call me what you will.
Anyway, so it looks like surgery will be on Monday at 7am. It should only be a 5-15 minute procedure. The risks associated with the tubes are pretty minimal, but you could pray that everything goes smoothly with the anesthesia. Rocky had issues with anesthesia when he was a kid. We're also hoping a good friend of ours will be the nurse anesthetist. If you think to pray for us why not tack that on there too. I'd love it if a friend could be in there with her, silly as it seems.
When we first got there we did another hearing test which is actually pretty cool (not that she had to have it, but the actual process itself). We sit together in a sound proof booth-- Adelaide in a high chair and me beside her. I silently preoccupy her attention with toys while the tech plays sounds of different pitches in speakers beside her. When she hears a sound and turns her head, the tech has a puppet light up and dance. I creates a sort of Pavlovian response to keep her turning her head toward the sounds she hears. Well, turns out Adelaide's hearing is still a bit diminished from all the thick fluid in her ears.
The ENT then checked out her ears. He, like the pediatrician, said she had a slight infection in one ear but that both were still very full of fluid, fluid that was thick mucous-like fluid. After taking a look, he suggested we get tubes. He said he based his tube decision on 2 criteria-- 1. more than 4 or 5 ear infections a year. 2. persistent otitis media (fluid/ inflammation in the ears for longer than 2 or 3 months). He said Adelaide struggles with both. He also the fluid is the perfect culture median and without it draining she's prone to more infections. So that coupled with her ongoing diminished hearing and the problems ongoing antibiotic use cause, he decided it was worth it.
The thing he was particularly concerned with is her hearing. He said this age is so critical to speech development that down the road if she continued to have muddled hearing, it could become more of a problem.
So I came home and told Rocky what the doctor said and I think he started to freak out a bit. He didn't like the idea of his little baby undergoing anesthesia. Honestly, who would like that idea. Anyway, after talking with friends, a call from the ENT, and some reading on my part, we are both feeling more confident and ready to proceed. I'm a researcher by nature and don't accept opinions as my own until I've learned about the subject 'til my heart's content. I don't think I'll ever be one of those folks that hears a doctor's suggestion and just goes with it. Call me what you will.
Anyway, so it looks like surgery will be on Monday at 7am. It should only be a 5-15 minute procedure. The risks associated with the tubes are pretty minimal, but you could pray that everything goes smoothly with the anesthesia. Rocky had issues with anesthesia when he was a kid. We're also hoping a good friend of ours will be the nurse anesthetist. If you think to pray for us why not tack that on there too. I'd love it if a friend could be in there with her, silly as it seems.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Trying to get a Visa Photo
This great site (Free!) allows you to upload your own picture and helps you get everything perfect for passport or visa type photos. You can then print them yourself or send them to your favorite photo place and get a 4x6 with 6 visa pictures. All in all, it saves about $7.80. Gotta love that. Here's the pictures we took the other day trying to get a good one for Adelaide's Thai visa:
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