Mother's Day is coming up in about a week, and unfortunately, I have to work...boo. But, we are hoping to celebrate it this weekend, maybe with dinner Saturday night, and breakfast in bed Sunday morning??? That is up to Derek and Aidan. I don't know much about what sort of gifts I want for Mother's Day, but I have soome ideas...
1. Nice Picture Frames - mainly 8x10, 5x7, and 10x13's. I have so many pictures of Aidan that I have been neglecting to put up due to the lack of picture frames.
2. Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 - I have been neglecting to work out, mainly because my schedule conflicts with it. However, this DVD is only about 20-30 minutes long, and is said to be similar to Insanity. I do have the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, but have only done it once...as it is SUPER hard. But, I am hoping to work on that again.
3. Anything homemade by Aidan - these gifts are what I always look forward to every year. They never get old, and are keepsakes.
4. Itunes gift card - I have an iPhone, so it never hurts to have some saved up $$ to purchase apps and music with. :)
I really don't ask for much, cause most things people can't really buy anyways. I know one thing I don't want (other than from my husband) is jewelry. I don't wear jewelry, except for my earrings and wedding ring. So for those of you who are thinking about getting me something, consider these options...but just remember, you really don't have to!
Friday, April 29, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Ear Infections
If you follow me on facebook, you probably know the struggle we have had with Aidan's ear infections. The infections basically started after he turned 1, and have just been continuing since. Unfortunately, every ear infection that he has had since his 1st birthday, he shows NO signs or symptoms. That's NO tugging on his ears, NO fevers, NO fussiness. So how am I supposed to tell when he has them, and how many have gone missed because he never went to the doctor?
His first ear infection was when he was around 7 months. I remember when he was at home, he had some serious drainage from his right ear. I called my mom first to get her opinion about whether to call the doctor or not. I don't want to be one of those moms who ALWAYS calls the doctor when their kid starts coughing or anything. She suggest I call, so I did. We set up an appointment with the physician assistant since we couldn't get into the doctor. She couldn't even see the ear drum, but confirmed that he had a ruptured membrane and started him on antibiotics (Amoxicilin). This was his first ear infection.
I believe he may have had one other around 9 months, but it was minor, and gave him antibiotics just to cover any type of infection.
However, when we started seeing our new pediatrician in KC, he began having all sorts of issues with his ears. He saw his pediatrician for his 1 year checkup, and everything turned out just fine. In October, he started developing a croupy cough, so I called the doctor, only to find out that he had croup and an ear infection. We started antibiotics and steroids. Not even 30 days later, he went back to the doctor with yet another ear infection. His follow up appointment in December came back clear.
When we went in for his routine 15 month checkup, we found that he has another double ear infection. This is the 3rd new infection since his first birthday. We have switched up antibiotics and keeping an eye on him to see how everything turns out. At his follow up appointment, he came back clear.
We haven't been to the doctor since February, thank heavens! But, at his 18 month routine checkup, he has developed another double ear infection. Again, we did a round of antibiotics and made a follow up appointment. Well, the followup was today, and this time, he seemed to have gotten worse. He still has an ear infection in both ears. Now many have asked why we don't just take it upon ourselves to go see an ENT specialist. We have our reasons, as you will see. We have discussed our options with our pediatrician, and feel we are doing what is best for Aidan.
Our pediatrician is cautious about sending patients, especially little ones, to an ENT specialist right away. She believes that she has executed all of our options before sending us off to another doctor. We have tried several antibiotics: amoxicilin, augmentin, omnicef, and now zithromax. If the last antibiotic doesn't work, she will try augmentin again, even though Aidan experienced very runny stools and vomited once while on it (not to mention, it was like pulling teeth to get him to take it). If the augmentin doesn't work, then we will look into seeing a specialist down at Children's Mercy.
I as a parent, do not believe that getting surgery done for tubes is the best answer. Aidan is not suffering, and his ear infections seem to occur when he is ill to begin with. He may be having these ear infections due to a secondary infection, growth, and weather. And there is no one that smokes in my house either (as secondhand smoke is a major cause of frequent ear infections in little ones). I am very grateful that we have a doctor who is looking at the child and situation as opposed to sending us off to surgery at the first sign of an infection. We are hopeful that now that the weather is getting better and the viruses are mostly done going around, these ear infections will subside.
We have a follow up appointment with our pediatrician at the end of May. We are hopeful that we will have good news.
His first ear infection was when he was around 7 months. I remember when he was at home, he had some serious drainage from his right ear. I called my mom first to get her opinion about whether to call the doctor or not. I don't want to be one of those moms who ALWAYS calls the doctor when their kid starts coughing or anything. She suggest I call, so I did. We set up an appointment with the physician assistant since we couldn't get into the doctor. She couldn't even see the ear drum, but confirmed that he had a ruptured membrane and started him on antibiotics (Amoxicilin). This was his first ear infection.
I believe he may have had one other around 9 months, but it was minor, and gave him antibiotics just to cover any type of infection.
However, when we started seeing our new pediatrician in KC, he began having all sorts of issues with his ears. He saw his pediatrician for his 1 year checkup, and everything turned out just fine. In October, he started developing a croupy cough, so I called the doctor, only to find out that he had croup and an ear infection. We started antibiotics and steroids. Not even 30 days later, he went back to the doctor with yet another ear infection. His follow up appointment in December came back clear.
When we went in for his routine 15 month checkup, we found that he has another double ear infection. This is the 3rd new infection since his first birthday. We have switched up antibiotics and keeping an eye on him to see how everything turns out. At his follow up appointment, he came back clear.
We haven't been to the doctor since February, thank heavens! But, at his 18 month routine checkup, he has developed another double ear infection. Again, we did a round of antibiotics and made a follow up appointment. Well, the followup was today, and this time, he seemed to have gotten worse. He still has an ear infection in both ears. Now many have asked why we don't just take it upon ourselves to go see an ENT specialist. We have our reasons, as you will see. We have discussed our options with our pediatrician, and feel we are doing what is best for Aidan.
Our pediatrician is cautious about sending patients, especially little ones, to an ENT specialist right away. She believes that she has executed all of our options before sending us off to another doctor. We have tried several antibiotics: amoxicilin, augmentin, omnicef, and now zithromax. If the last antibiotic doesn't work, she will try augmentin again, even though Aidan experienced very runny stools and vomited once while on it (not to mention, it was like pulling teeth to get him to take it). If the augmentin doesn't work, then we will look into seeing a specialist down at Children's Mercy.
I as a parent, do not believe that getting surgery done for tubes is the best answer. Aidan is not suffering, and his ear infections seem to occur when he is ill to begin with. He may be having these ear infections due to a secondary infection, growth, and weather. And there is no one that smokes in my house either (as secondhand smoke is a major cause of frequent ear infections in little ones). I am very grateful that we have a doctor who is looking at the child and situation as opposed to sending us off to surgery at the first sign of an infection. We are hopeful that now that the weather is getting better and the viruses are mostly done going around, these ear infections will subside.
We have a follow up appointment with our pediatrician at the end of May. We are hopeful that we will have good news.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
missed the bandwagon
Everyone has heard the saying 'fell off the bandwagon'. Well, I missed mine completely. I was setting goals to get on track with diet and exercise, but never got started. The couch to 5K doesn't fit into my schedule right now, although i am going to make every effort to get started. So, I am going to have to make a commitment, yet again, to myself and my family. Aidan loves to play outside, and I don't have the energy to right now, so I make his dad go. I really want to play with him, but just can't seem to enjoy it. So, that is why I want to get running and start losing some weight. I will start this week...and will post how that went. I am debating on if I want to post my stats or not (weight, measurements, etc), or just state how many have been lost (or heaven-forbid gained). We will see :)
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Dancing in Heaven
This morning, my Great Grandma Dorothy went to a 'dance in heaven'. She was 92 years old, living at home, and dancing all the time. She had a stroke last Wednesday, and with her kidney failure, the doctor's did not have any thing else they could do for her. She was put on hospice care to make her comfortable Friday night, and kept holding on through the weekend. She left behind an amazing family (who stayed by her side the entire time). She has 8 children, 26 living grandchildren (2 preceded her in death), 51 great grandchildren, and 28 great-great grandchildren. My great-grandpa passed away 24 years ago.
Although it has been a difficult time for the family, we are all blessed to have her in our lives. I love you Grandma!
Although it has been a difficult time for the family, we are all blessed to have her in our lives. I love you Grandma!
Monday, April 4, 2011
new goals...
Well, this weekend totally sucked. My great grandma has been in the hosptial not doing very well at all, and I have been eating like a pig. When I get stressed, I eat (I also eat when I am bored). So my 'diet' did not exist. We had everything from pizza to buscuits and gravy, to alfredo with shrimp. It was BAD! I gained 5 lbs since I last checked my weight (which was actually a couple weeks ago). So it's time for a change. I don't like yo-yo dieting, and want to work on eating healthier. Plus, I don't think we have included vegetables in a meal for a while. Poor Aidan.
So here is my plan. I have downloaded the Couch to 5K application on iPhone. I hope to start Wednesday this week. I also plan on eating a lot better. I know I can't change everything all in one day, but I am going to be more aware of what I put into my body, and what I expect out of it. I can't keep eating whatever I want and expect no weight gain, or even weight loss. So I am going to have to start making weekly goals, and monthly ones for that matter.
My weekly goal for this week: start the couch to 5K and stick to it!
My monthly goal for April: lose 5 lbs
That sounds realistic, doesn't it? Let's just see if I can stick to it!
So here is my plan. I have downloaded the Couch to 5K application on iPhone. I hope to start Wednesday this week. I also plan on eating a lot better. I know I can't change everything all in one day, but I am going to be more aware of what I put into my body, and what I expect out of it. I can't keep eating whatever I want and expect no weight gain, or even weight loss. So I am going to have to start making weekly goals, and monthly ones for that matter.
My weekly goal for this week: start the couch to 5K and stick to it!
My monthly goal for April: lose 5 lbs
That sounds realistic, doesn't it? Let's just see if I can stick to it!
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