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Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Can't take much more of this (but so grateful at the same time)

As you know, David, Audrey, and I have taken turns being sick since the first week of November. Last week, Audrey's illness took on a serious tone, to say the least. I'll go ahead and say that she's perfectly fine (except for a vicious cold), but we didn't know that then.

Audrey and I have been fighting a bacterial/viral infection for several weeks now. It's cost us several hundred dollars in homeopathic remedies. Why not take Audrey to the doctor? Because I don't want her taking antibiotics that are unnecessary. That's why I have to take such strong meds when I get sick, because I took too many antibiotics as a child.

I decided last Thursday that Audrey needed to go to the doctor. She'd had a fever since the first day of February (at least), and I was getting concerned. David took her, since I was sick in bed. I was awakened by a call from David, saying they were on their way home from the doctor's office. I asked what was wrong with Audrey, and he said, "We'll talk about it when we get home."

Yeah, I don't think so. Then he said, "Well, they've definitely ruled out cancer; the doctor wanted you to know that." Excuse me? CANCER? He then told me that we needed to take Audrey to the Children's Hospital the next day for blood work. Our doctor wanted to see if she had a long-running virus or an autoimmune disorder. Again, what the...?

To make a long story short, I completely freaked out. I called my mother in tears to explain what was going on, hoping to pull myself together by the time David and Audrey got home.

Dr. W asked if our thermometer could be the problem. We have one that measures temporally (one that you swipe across the child's forehead). We had wondered that before, when she had an ear infection recently, so we took the thermometer to the doctor. We tested it against theirs, and ours was spot on.

I can't write anymore right now because I am truly exhausted and very angry, but at least you know she's okay. More on this the next post.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Valentines

We had fun making valentines for the grandparents this year. We decided to keep it simple, just to cut out hearts and put stickers all over them. David cut out the hearts, and we just peeled the backs off the stickers and let Audrey place them wherever she wanted.

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Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Yeah, I definitely live in my robe. Whatever. I'm been sick forever now.

Anyway, we also made one for David on the sly while he was at work. It was so much fun and so simple. Audrey loved it, and so did the grandparents, needless to say.

David and I agreed that we'd keep Valentine's Day simple this year, no gifts, just cards. And that we'd go see a movie soon or go out to eat. Well, David didn't abide by that rule, as you can see.

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He had already given me a single rose on Sunday, which I was perfectly happy with (you can see it to the left of the other flowers in the last pic). He also sent me dark chocolates, which is basically the only sugar I can have, one piece a day (or sometimes two:) So basically, I feel guilty about not getting him anything, but I'm not going to let that keep me from enjoying my gifts!

We bought Audrey three books, and I've read them about a million times since we gave them to her on Sunday. She particularly likes Itsy Bitsy Spider, which contains not only the song, but also an explanation of why Itsy Bitsy is trying to climb the water spout in the first place. It's a great book.

Happy belated Valentine's Day!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Build-a-Bear

Mom wanted to get my nieces and Audrey an animal from Build-a-Bear for Valentine's Day. We did this last year, too, the weekend before Valentine's. We decided to go this past weekend so it wouldn't be too crowded. Puh-lease. That place was packed full of people.

And so many rude kids! Three little girls, who were in line behind Owen, actually pushed him out of the way so they could see the selection of animals. Unbelievable. Somebody asked where their parents were, but I didn't see them anywhere (big surprise).

I think Audrey enjoyed it, although she was overwhelmed. That place is so hot, it's ridiculous. I'm the most cold-natured person I know, but I knew from last year that I was going to be miserable. Even with a short-sleeved shirt, though, I was roasting. I could never work there; what a nightmare. The lights are so bright, it's so loud, and I feel like I'm teaching again when I'm in there. ::shudder::

Audrey got a really cute dog, though, and he has a magnet in his mouth and one paw so he can "blow kisses". Here he is.

Adorable. So I guess it was worth it.

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Friday, February 3, 2012

We're sick again (don't read if you just ate or have a weak stomach)

This is so ridiculous. I mean, really. Can't we catch a break? Around 11:00 on Tuesday night, I was reading in bed and heard Audrey coughing (or what I thought was coughing). Then I heard a lot of moving around, so I decided to run in there. I didn't turn on the light, hoping I could soothe her back to sleep.

I was immediately hit by this sickly sweet smell. I actually thought for a second, Did she sneak something to eat in her room? Which totally didn't make sense, I realize. I turned on the light, and there was vomit EVERYWHERE. Literally. It was all over her, her "babies", the sheets, the crib, and the WALL. Talk about projectile vomiting.

She was on her knees in the crib, staring at her hands, which were covered with...well, you know. She was just totally confused by what had happened, since she hasn't ever really thrown up. Besides the spit up she had as a baby, of course.

Oh my gosh, it was terrible. I immediately scooped her up, and she was so hot. She kept saying "Mess, mess" and I was trying to reassure her that everything was okay. She's become kind of obsessed about messes lately.

I don't want to get into too much detail, but there was some undigested food that was definitely recognizable, and she kept talking about that, too. Okay, maybe that was too much detail.

I started making my way to the bedroom to get David, and he met us at the door. He had to wash everything in the crib, including the babies. Thank goodness we have a duplicate of her lovey she's had since she was a baby. She needed a bath for obvious reasons, and it was around midnight when we got back to bed.

David decided to stay home right then and there, and he started working on sub plans. We didn't know how the night was going to go. Thankfully, that was the only time she threw up.

On Wednesday, I already had an appt with my homeopathic doctor, since I've been feeling so weak and fatigued. Audrey went with us, and Jeanne decided to test her, too. We both have something called rickettsia, which is a virus and bacterial infection all rolled up in one. Double the fun. She also tested David, who didn't have it, thank goodness.

So now I'm giving her drops in water and spraying an immune-enhancing homeopathic into her mouth twice a day. David had the idea to get her to open her mouth to sing, and then I spray it in there. It doesn't have any taste, which is wonderful.

So we go back to Jeanne on Monday to see if it's gone. I pray that it is. Here she is after our wonderful night. Looking a little paler than usual, no?

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