My sick & injured family

Last week was a hard week for us.  Everyone was sick or injured :(

Poor Caylee had been sniffling, so I had a feeling her ear infection wasn't gone.  She napped in the waiting room...such a little mess!

Those flushed little cheeks just look so sad :(  I was right about the ear infection, so the doctor gave us a new prescription for something new to try.  She's also been itching her head a lot and it's causing scabs and some bleeding, so the doctor recommended something for that too.

On Wednesday, I got a call around 11 that Connor hurt his foot and he wouldn't walk on it.  It's definitely not like him to refuse to play or be active, so we were worried he might have a serious injury.  I picked him up at daycare, took him home, and he still wouldn't put any weight on it.  After his nap, I figured he'd forget about it, but he woke up crying because he couldn't walk, so I took him to the pediatric ER for an x-ray.

He was such a trooper through the whole thing and I told him from the beginning that we were going to the doctor or he could try to walk.  It was his choice to go, so I knew he had to be in a lot of pain.  Armed with a Happy Meal, we hung out in the hospital room and went for some x-rays.  Fortunately, they couldn't see any fractures or breaks, but his foot was pretty swollen by the time we left.

I had to carry him back to the car and we were home in time for bed.  He went back to daycare the next day, while limping, but he's been brave!

13 weeks

Our little baby at the NT scan this week!  This picture isn't very good, but I was able to see a lot on the screen during the test.  The tech said everything looked perfect and the baby was measuring just right.  I'll get results from the blood test late next week with the holiday delay.

As for me, I've been feeling better this week and I'm down to one Zofran every morning.  I'm still throwing up occasionally, but it's still much better.  I went to the doctor because my coughing was starting to hurt my chest and she told me I didn't have pneumonia (yay!), but she gave me an inhaler to help with the spastic coughing.  Even after only 24 hours, I noticed a big difference and that's been really great.  Unfortunately, the chest/rib pain is worse and I may have bruised a rib or pulled some muscles from all my coughing.  I'm hanging in there with the pain, but it's hard to move around especially in bed.

Connor is starting to understand that there's a baby in my tummy now!  We have him give the baby kisses and we remind him that the baby will be coming out soon.

8 Weeks & Ultrasound!

My Week:

Going through Tylenol like it's candy.

I've thrown up every day this week.

I've eaten about 5937 apple slices in the past 6 days.

Wishing I could be in bed all freaking day.

Wendy's chicken nuggets with honey mustard is awesome

On  good note, I got an ultrasound at my first appointment!  Everything is looking good and I cried a little when the ultrasound tech told me the baby was there with a heartbeat.

I told the doctor about my 24/7 crappy feeling and she told me I could take Unisom, B6 and Zofran to help.  I've been taking them for about 4 days now and I'm not seeing much difference, but I'm hoping maybe it will kick in soon.

I have to wear scarves every day at work to hide my baby bump.  It looks so small in this pic from early in the week, but I feel so much bigger!  I can't button any of my pants anymore and I started wearing the belly band to keep them up.

Overall, I'm just happy everything is good with the baby, but I could really use some relief health-wise.  I also just found out I have shingles, so that's an added headache to deal with during week 9 coming up.

A Visit to the Dermatologist

Last week, Connor had his first visit to the dermatologist.  I've been working about the redness and rashes on his cheeks and hands and I wanted to get them checked out to see if there was anything we could do to help.  We tried a few different creams at home, but nothing really made a difference and the redness never went away.  He was a big boy in the doctor's waiting room and he spent his time "drawing" with my pen that ran out of ink.

The doctor was very sweet and offered to take off her white lab coat to make him feel more comfortable.  The nurse gave him 2 stickers to keep him occupied during the exam and he did great.  He was diagnosed with atopic dermatitis and we got a prescription for some cream to use.  She also gave me a list of some good soaps and lotions to try on his sensitive skin.

So here's his new skin regimen and things seem to be working very well.  I can tell the redness is getting lighted just in the past few days.  Somehow, he decided that the giant lotion tub is fun to play with, so he actually enjoys when I put it on him.  I put all his lotion on twice a day, and hopefully, we will see a big difference within the next few weeks.  The doctor said it's very common for this to pop up around his age and he will most likely grow out of it, so that's great news!

Double ear infection

Surprise!

We predicted this last night when we realized his ears were getting all crusty and gross again.  It looks like the medicine from the first ear infection (with tubes) didn't work so well since he has another one already.  Luckily, he seems to be in a better mood and he's starting to eat more.  I hope this weekend he can rest up and he'll be ready and healthy for Thanksgiving.

A Day in my Life (working mom style)

This was an idea started by Jen in our August 2011 group. It's pretty interesting to read how everyone spends their days and I'm sure this will be funny for me to read in a few years.

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

5:00 am
Alarm goes off and I get up. Time to shower and start to get ready for work.

5:21 am
Go downstairs and give Kitty his breakfast. Then I get some Peanut Butter Cheerios for myself and take it upstairs to eat while I watch the news.

5:27 am
Wake up the munchkin & feel horrible that I have to wake him while he's still completely asleep. Make sure Daddy is awake and in the shower.

5:32 am
Nurse Connor while I watch the news and catch up on Facebook.
6:05 am
Finishing getting Connor and I ready to go.

6:25 am
Connor, Hubby and I are out the door and on our way.

6:54 am
Get to work and turn on my computer to see my favorite face. (My coworkers set this up for me on my first day back after maternity leave.)

8:27 am
First pumping session
This is the mother's room at work. There's two little spaces with shower curtains and a small fridge to store milk. The one in the photo is "mine" since there's only 2 of us pumping right now.

For my first pumping session of the day, I always read the newspaper.

9:12 am
Headed to the bathroom and figured I'd take a photo so I can remember how I dressed for work. I dress up 2-3x a week and wear jeans for the other days.

9:46 am
Morning snack

10:17 am
Not really feeling too creative today, but at least it looks like I'm working.

11:24 am
Second pumping session
I usually check TMZ and CNN on my phone. I play Solitaire until I win and then I read magazines.

12:07 pm
A quick workout at the gym across the street from work. I did 20 minutes on the treadmill and then some abs and arms.

1:07 pm
Warmed up my frozen Smart Ones for lunch

2:21 pm
Last pumping session for the day while I played Solitaire on my phone and read some emails.

3:00 pm
Meeting with the checks team and we actually got out at a decent time! Usually the meeting goes for almost 90 minutes because we end up chatting about reality tv.

4:07 pm
Out the door and on my way home!

4:33 pm
Stopped at the cleaner to drop off clothes

4:49 pm
Paid some bills (Yes, I have sock monkey checks!)

4:57 pm
Do the dishes left in the sink

5:03 pm
Play with Kitty for a few minutes

5:09 pm
Watch Parenthood from last night while I put away laundry

5:27 pm
Migraine and I can't stand it anymore!

5:35 pm
Daddy and Connor are home! Connor was sleeping from his ride home.

5:51 pm
Hubby was playing video games tonight, so I made a quick dinner of microwave Jack Daniels shredded chicken and club soda. I ate dinner while I nursed Connor and watched tv in bed.

6:34 pm

Diaper change on the bedroom floor

6:41 pm
Playing on the floor

6:52 pm
Saying hello to himself in the mirror

7:00 pm
Time for my tv shows and play time in the boppy

7:13 pm
Dance party during commercials! I played fun songs from YouTube and we danced.

7:30 pm
All swaddled and ready for bed

7:42 pm
Worked on some Valentine's Day crafts for a little bit

8:00 pm
Snuggled up in bed with Kitty and passed out by 8:30!

Busy day in my life, but that's my typical day!

A little holiday treat

Bubble gum!

Or at least medicine that smells like bubblegum...

The pediatrician said he has a small ear infection which is probably why he's been sniffly for the past couple of weeks. Poor guy.

His face was hilarious when I gave him his first dose of the medicine last night.

What's this weird taste? I don't know if I like this...

But he took it like a champ and swallowed the whole thing! Feel better soon, munchkin!

Connor's Day 2

Amazement

His first night, I was exhausted, but the adrenaline and excitement was keeping me going. I tried to rest while he slept, but I was also in so much pain. My swelling got to be extremely painful and I had a hard time even laying in bed. Just getting out of bed to waddle to the bathroom was horrible and I needed 2 people to help me. I couldn't even look down as I sat on the toilet because it scared me too much. The first two times I got up, I was shaking and very nauseous so the nurses had to help me from falling over. Between the pain, the thought of what things looked like, and the exhaustion, it was too much for me to handle. But the nurses were great about pumping up the pain meds and giving me ice diapers every few hours.

Connor woke up 2 or 3 times during his first night and I was able to nurse until he went back to sleep. Amazingly, I was also able to get some sleep between feedings and woke up feeling energized.

In the morning, Hubby helped me take a shower and I was shocked that I was able to do it! While I got dressed, I started to be able to move around a little better, but I was still in a lot of pain. It felt awesome to be clean, dry my hair, put on some makeup, and get back to feeling more normal.

Daddy & Connor while Mommy got dressed

During the day, I nursed when he was hungry and loved just staring at his little face and watching his emotions change every few seconds. The more I stared, the more amazed I was. His extremely long & skinny fingers are JUST like mine! Even the nurses were shocked by how cold his toes were when the rest of his body was warm...just like his Mommy! And I started to notice that his nose and eyes looked very similar to mine as well. I never imagined having another person (besides my sister) that looked like me. It's just the most wonderful feeling!

Connor with his first gift after birth from Aunt Julie & his grandparents

Our nurses were absolutely amazing and came in to check on me all day and night. The ice diapers became my BFF along with Motrin & Norco meds. I was in so much pain at first and even the nurses commented on how awful it looked. I was too scared to look, but I could tell it was pretty bad just from having to move around and get help just to get out of bed and into the bathroom. Every dose of medicine helped a little more and I started to feel better.

Our celebration dinner

By the second night, reality was starting to set in and I realized I'm finally a mommy!