Flying around the house

running around the house with the fly swaper - now that's fun!

Sunday Morning Bliss

Playing hard. Working on puzzles. Riding the old horse. Sun is streaming in. Plenty of sleep for everyone. Cool morning air. Full of possibilities. Maybe the pool. Maybe going out to lunch. Fresh pasta from the farmers market. Sweet, local tomatoes.

I am afraid to take him to the hair dresser. Afraid they will cut off all his hair, or that he will look too grown up, too official. That innocent head of hair. So I started cutting it myself last night, nervously. It turned out OK, definitely "unprofessional" but sweet. I know he and I will only get away with that for a little while longer. So I better enjoy it.

At the playground

too eventful for words

The thought of putting it all into words is exhausting, plus I am still recovering from it myself. It's one of those things you want to just forget about asap and pretend like it never happened. A quick summary - happy miles goes to bed Tuesday night. One hour later wakes up with horrendous sounding cough, and hardly able to breath. You gasp for air while I hook you up to the nebulizer we got a month earlier during a wheezing episode. I quickly realize that this is more than wheezing. You looked at me scared and confused and crying. I was scared, confused and crying. I knew this wasn't good. We thought you might be having a bad allergic reaction, maybe to sesame seeds which were in a chicken dish we had for dinner, or eggs which you had that day as well. We drove to the ER where they immediately took care of you. They hooked you up to a nebulizer (we had to hold you down as you were screaming) and gave you a steroid shot to relax the airways. Diagnosis - Croup (virus causing the upper airways to swell). They sent us home 6 hours later at 3:00am. You slept without a problem through the night. The next day you seem almost normal, playful and interactive. After another normal night, we decided to take you to daycare. I picked you up early that day and immediately noticed on the way home that you were breathing loud and fast. I timed your breathing - about 50 times a minute. The doctor said to bring you back if you breath 40 times a minute. Also, your ribs were contracting when breathing. Another bad sign. So we go back to the ER as it was after five already. The virus seemed to have moved down into your lungs causing the wheezing. They hooked you up to an IV and you had to use the nebulizer again (with albuterol) now every two hours throughout the night. Then every three, then every four until we got to go home nearly 24 hours later... It was heartbreaking seeing you in your little hospital gown on the IV and with the nebulizer mask. At some point you got so restless we took you for a walk down the hall rolling the IV stand behind you. The whole thing was horrible and seemed like a nightmare. It scared me to death.

We are all at home now, recovering from the hardest parenting experience yet. You seem to be yourself already again. I overheard the nurses in the hospital saying that these things are often worst for the parents than the kids. I know what she meant.

Now, we have had some fun over here too. Last weekend we got out the finger paints!

Plus, you walk ALL the time now.

Boyish

wheels, hose, dirt, water, inside of the car, record player, records, cabinets, fan...fascinating stuff for little boys (and big ones).

first bite

A couple of weeks ago you came home from day care with a big bite mark on your arm and a bruise on your cheek. Apparently, one of the little girls who is close to two years old has a biting issue and took it out on you.....you were trying to get away, lost your balance, fell, and hurt your cheek. At least that is what we think happened. No one exactly saw what occurred and you didn't even cry out (very hard to imagine). It was awful seeing you like that and having to imagine what happened and knowing that we weren't able to be there for you. It's harder than ever to leave you there in the morning as you just don't want to let us go. You cling to my clothes when I put you down to leave and cry every time. I know that you don't cry for long and quickly engage with the other kids. But it is oh so hard. The funny thing is that by the time we pick you up in the evening you are usually in the middle of something hardly noticing that we are there to pick you up.

hanging out at the pool with Evie, who turned one!